Muse Section
by TsundereHeavyCruiser
Summary: June 1944, The Girls of Muse Section are about to drop behind enemy lines to make way for the biggest invasion force ever assembled in the history of mankind. But as lives are put on the line and choices are made, they will discover the human heart isn't something you can train for. Pairings: [UmiMaki] [Nozoeli] [TsubaKotoHono love triangle], Rated T (with blood and language)
1. Prologue

**A/N: This is a brief introduction to the world I have set my story in, it also contains backstories halfway down. the real narrative starts next chapter and this is really just me indulging the historian in me by giving context.**

 **Also due to my usage of military terminology, with which not everyone may be familiar I shall include for your convenience a glossary at the bottom of each chapter listing the words used and what they correspond to (Mostly weapons and equipment)**

 **I feel it necessary to add that I mean no offence to any nationalities in the process of this story.**

 **Now featuring New actiony Prologue after this so if you don't want a universe back story click the next chapter button for something more narrative based and actiony**

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Prologue: A World Not Quite Like Ours

Extract from the introduction of, _Women Warriors and Hell Jumpers: The Parachute Regiment and the 6_ _th_ _Parachute Division in World War Two_ by Dr Pamela Whitdane (1967)

…the successful campaign lead by Miss Pankhurst in the days before World War One to allow Women to fight in frontline combat roles would inevitably have far reaching consequences. The bloody experience of the Boer War combined with increasing Suffragette pressure led to the passing of the Equal Service Act of 1913 one year before the war broke out to supplement fears of an outnumbered British force on the continent. The strains of war soon compelled nations like Germany the Japanese and even the French to follow suit soon after

The subsequent women's regiments composed of both women rankers and officers that were formed did not see large scale deployment until Loos in 1915 along with Kitchener's new armies, but by the end of the war composed of over 40% of all allied forces, rising to 60% in some cases such as the Japanese Expeditionary force, on the western front, with multiple women's and mixed regiments participating in the 100 days offensive and pushing into the heart of the Rhineland. By this time casualty rates amongst allied and British generals had also meant the promotion of many Women officers to previously unthinkable ranks the highest being Major General Emily Seaworth commander of the British third Army.

The social impacts of this were profound, combined with the spectre of socialist revolution the demobilisation of many working men and women necessitated the passing of many sweeping acts. Notably in both France and the British Empire in 1919 was the right to vote for all citizens over the age of 18 as well the ability to stand for elected office and the right to education and fair pay. These bills pushed through by the liberal party against the wishes of the conservatives in the early 1920s are now known collectively as the rights acts.

The ability to stand for office however changed much, the influx of women into the conservative party meant a quick volte-face on the issue of women's rights with Emmeline Pankhurst herself becoming the leader of the party in 1929, the first woman in history to lead a major electoral party.

At a more local level the impact of the trenches had overturned the sexual status quo. Bonds formed in the heat of battle tended to die hard, and divorce rates skyrocketed as men and women alike dealt with the scars of war. At the same time the cheapness of life during the war had caused looser sexual attitudes which persisted and ushered in a sexual revolution, combined with medical advances such as the contraceptive pill. A series of scandals involving homosexual relationships embroiling many senior commanders and thousands of ex-soldiers prompted equal amounts of outrage and understanding, the scandals even reaching as far as Field Marshall Haig and Maj. Gen. Seaworth herself. It rapidly became clear that existing legislation on homosexuality was inadequate and outdated and under the umbrella of bi-partisan leadership the so-called Right to Love Act of 1930 decriminalised homosexuality across the empire, with the dominions and France following suit within the year.

It was in this context as the new brutalised generation clashed with the old across Europe, in some places such as Germany and Italy the clash was violent and lead to extremist parties fighting in the street. Conservatism sometimes reasserting itself violently. After the appointment of Hitler as chancellor in 1933 the 3 Ks of _Kinder Kirche Kuche_ stripped women of rights that even dated back to the Second Reich and World War 1.

The remainder of the inter-war period saw appeasement and tension in equal measure, the re-militarisation of the Rhineland and the collapse of the apparatus of the League of Nations made it plain that war was only a matter of time. Germany France Britain and the USSR all put in place plans to re-arm as quickly as possible.

With the invasion of Poland after the Danzig crisis the BEF was dispatched to France and fought a controversial campaign in neutral Norway over the winter of 1939-1940. As spring dawned and widespread conscription was introduced people expected yet another long drawn out affair on the fields of France; the blitzkrieg that followed in May 1940 was a huge shock, with the allied high command paralysed on what to do; most decisions were left up to divisional commanders. In this context the formations that were predominately female both French and British were found by the now wholly male German army to put up extremely fierce resistance, after the horror stories of the Polish campaign had filtered back over the lines. Some Historians now point to the last stand and ultimately barbaric fate of the 40eme régiment d'tirailleurs féminine in the Massif Centrale as a harbinger of the horrors of the eastern front. Women's formations were among the first to pledge their allegiance to the cross of Lorraine after De Gaulle's call to arms of June 1940 ans subsequently went on to form the core of not only the Free French forces but also of many resistance cells inside occupied France and Europe.

The obvious tenacity with which the women's formations fought, in an otherwise speedy collapse, was immediately obvious to the British high command and hence the decision was taken that elite units would more often prioritise women than men in their induction. This was not always the case as the Long Range Desert Group of the 8th army was still predominately male as was Stirling's SAS. But newly formed and experimental units such as the Chindits upon their formation and the SBS certainly applied to this rule. By 1945 both had in some cases units of at least 80% female composition. To this rule the new Parachute divisions were no exception.

The Parachute divisions, or more officially known as the British Airborne forces, were formed after Germany's seizure of Crete in 1941 and bore the motto of _In Pedibus Primum Infernum_ , a remark on how they got into battle. Theirs is the story with whom we concern ourselves. The two divisions formed were primarily composed of women due to their higher dexterity and a higher tolerance to pain which were believed to be vital to airborne operations. the two divisions were blooded in North Africa earning the nickname of the Red Devils and Hell Jumpers from the German units which engaged them. Commander of the Afrika Korps himself Erwin Rommel said of the Paras in an echo of Napoleon "It is a good thing there are so few of these Women, or else we would be fighting in the outskirts of Berlin already.". this explosive introduction onto the stage of warfare for the Paratroopers earned them fame and loathing in equal measure a theme repeated as they saw combat in every major allied campaign from 1942 onwards.

In these numerous campaigns there arose one particular story from the aftermath of Operation Furistan. During the Sicily landings in 1943 soldiers advancing inland were told by Paratroopers and Prisoners alike, of a group of 9 women who fought in an old Greek temple dedicated to the 9 muses for over two days against an entire battalion of German infantry. These girls were all that remained of the unit that had held the temple but held it they did, and in doing so they ensured a speedy advance for the British forces up the west coast of Sicily.

Their story was verified and spread like wildfire, and the girls rapidly became legend in the British army and beyond. Being the sole survivors of their company they were formed into a section under the command of the ranking NCO. This section in honour and memory of the temple in which they had fought on Sicily would forever be known as Muse Section…

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 _Extract from chapter 5: The Story of Muse Section_

Before we tell the story of Muse Section in depth it is important to note the backgrounds of the each of the characters composing this most odd yet elite of formations.

The Ranking NCO Hardly needs little introduction, Sgt Kousaka was born and raised in the village of Lightseed in Hampshire in 1921 to her parents both of whom ran a bakery with numerous orders from high-end hotels in London for their pastries, the girl displayed as told by many accounts a determination bordering on recklessness and the true qualities of a leader. She led a comfortable life relative to most in her area and was all set to take over the family business when in 1939 war broke out. Being 18 when war arrived Sgt Kousaka took her father's place in the draft, and joined up that same year. Both she and her younger sister, future Minister of defence Yukiho Kousaka, started in the Hampshire regiment with the elder Kousaka quickly rising to the rank of sergeant and joining the parachute regiment in 1941 as her sister entered the Hampshires.

The Second in Command Corporal Sonoda was also born in Lightseed in 1921 to a more conservative background, her father was an MP and the Sonoda family had been part of the local Squirearchy for generations, as the sole Sonoda heir the future Corporal was trained from a young age in fencing archery, dancing and painting. Her father was one of the few MPs who voted against the party whip in the passing of the 1930 Right to Love Act and abhorred the idea of women holding ranking positions over men. His views did not appear to greatly impact his daughter however, as Corporal Sonoda also joined the Hampshires on the outbreak of war in order to fight for her country, along with rumours abounding about a potential relationship with one of her squad mates. again one year later she followed her friend into the parachute regiment rising to be Corporal to Kousaka's Sergeant.

The final inhabitant of Lightseed was the section Markswoman Private Minami, born again in 1921 and coming from a family with intimate military connections her mother having served in World War One as a lieutenant and being decorated on two separate occasions. As a child Pvt. Minami was always aware of the possibility of military service which hung over her head, and the training in marksman-ship from her mother a local teacher she received as a child marked this out. She was childhood friends with the other two Lightseed inhabitants and it is believed that although they had separate reasons all decided to join up together, again she followed her friends into the Parachute regiment in 1941. Interviews suggest that she was very close to the Sergeant but the nature of the relationship as ever is not known.

The Section Medic Lance Corporal Nishikino, however was born in 1922 to the admired Nishikino family who operated a hospital in London as well as a clinic on the prestigious Harley Street. Nishikino grew up around medicine and was expected to follow her parents into the profession. However after loosing contact with Jewish friends in the medical community in Germany after Kristalnacht both her parents developed a hatred of Nazism and all it stood for, both in 1938 dropped everything and enrolled in the Royal Army Medical Corps as officers. Nishikino was also known in London society to be a talented pianist but at the outbreak of war her skills were little in demand. As such in April 1940 just before the German blitzkrieg Nishikino joined up as a private in the Princess of Wales' own West Sussex Guards. Her medical prowess soon saw her to join the RAMC like her parents but as a ranker once more, after joining the Parachute regiment in 1942 she rose to Lance Corporal. It is around Nishikino that the rumours of Sonoda's wartime relationship swirl.

Little Concrete is Known about Private Tojo, all that is certain is that she was a ships hand on the _SS Artist-hand_ from 1935 onwards until 1940 when she applied for citizenship, ostensibly her parents having resided in Hong Kong, and her date of birth being around 1920 to join the army. After enlisting she joined the Royal Berkshire regiment before joining the Parachute regiment on it's formation in 1941, after this the record is once again spotty and all that is known is that she turned down promotion many times even before Joining Muse Section.

Private Ayase, was born in London in 1920 to a bank clerk and her mother Natalia Ayase a well-known White-Russian émigré who had fled the chaos of her homeland in 1918 to come to Britain. Ayase's life consisted of mostly meeting other Émigré families and learning the ropes of aristocratic life at a boarding school in Oxfordshire. she stood out from the rest of the students holding liberal, sometimes socialistic views in spite of, or perhaps because of, her mother's influence she became involved in numerous Liberal groups associating with figures such as H.G. Wells, Bertram Russel and Virginia Woolf. She was even tipped for a political career before the outbreak of war. After-joining the Berkshire rifles in 1939 she remained stable as a private awaiting a deployment to France that never came. She joined the Paras in 1941, interestingly it is rumoured that despite little being known about Pvt. Tojo's record these two stuck together like glue throughout the war.

Private Yazawa was also born in 1920 in London, yet her life in the slums of White-chapel was markedly different from that of Nishikino or Ayase, after attending 7 years of primary education Yazawa taught herself and siblings the rest unwilling to pay the fees for a private school. Working as a tutor, laundress and aiding in her mother's shop Yazawa was by all accounts an earnest and hard worker, it is believed that she and Private Koizumi were responsible for the group putting on inpromtu shows and singing performances at the various army bases they were stationed at.

The Section Runner Private Hoshizora and her companion Private Koizumi both grew up in the docks of Bristol in similar conditions to Private Yazawa both having been born in 1922. However from an early age Hoshizora's athletic ability made her a rising star in the athletic world aided by the coaching of Koizumi. It was even rumoured that she might be able to run a four minute mile, and that she had offers for places on the British athletics team at Tokyo 1940. War however precluded her and her coach's dreams of standing on top of the podium. Yet her skill immediately marked both out as model soldiers, even if Koizumi was timid at times. The Commando regiment offered them both places after they joined in 1940 only to be turned down. Both stuck in the Somerset Light infantry until 1942 at which point they joined the Parachute regiment.

These bonds and skills that pre-existed their fame are of vital importance to understanding how these 9 women came together to form one of the legends of World War Two. The inspiration of the allies, and the bane of the Axis. Muse Section.

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 **A/N:**

 **Thus the stage is set. the rest of the story will be a narrative so worry not.**

 **Glossary, not mentioned in this chapter but they will appear a lot** **or are standard issue weapons for the section** , **so they're going to be mentioned here.**

 **Section: the smallest unit of organising men in the british army usually composed of 8-10 men equipped with a light machine gun rifles Sub-machine guns etc commanded by a Sergeant, analogous to an American 'Squad'.**

 **NCO: Non-Commissioned Officer what it says on the tin an officer not holing a Commission (Usually ranks from Lance Corporal to Warrant Officer inc. Sergeant and Corporal)**

 **Sten: Sten sub-machine gun, a submachine gun manufactured by the British for a cheap quick to make sub-machine gun, the result was after being put into mass production the Sten Mk II, which was a piece of crap that jammed a lot etc. As Paratroopers the girls of Muse are using the only Mark that really worked the Mk V. introduced in 1944**

 **Bren: A light machine gun standard issue in the British army in WW2 usually distributed one per section.**

 **Lee-enfield: the No. 4 Mk Lee-enfield rifle had a 10 round .303 magazine and was equipped with a spike bayonet, the same sights and bayonet would be used on the Sten Mk V.**

 **Mortar: Muzzle loading artillery that fires things at high trajectories and low ranges, most commonly used in a platoon was a 3 inch cal mortar firing various types of shell.**

 **MP: member of Parliament (in this context at least it does _not_ mean Military Police)**


	2. Prologue Part II

**A/N: So I decided that I needed a bit more of an actiony prologue to keep readers hooked and that neither the first chapter or the history lesson before this fits the bill. So here is part of the story that made the Girls we know the legends they become.**

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Muse Section Prologue: Operation Fustian

July 14th 1943, Near Catania Sicily

"MORTAR!"

Nico flinched as the ear splitting explosion rocked the dusty crossroads sending clods of dirt flying through the air.

 _This is bad, we're not going to last long if they've brought up mortars…_

Nico grimly surveyed the terrain around her taking in the sight of carnage and dead bodies of paratroopers from behind the boulder; that was sheltering her from the storm of bullets, currently raking the Sicilian dirt with metal and death. The noise of battle incessant as machine gun fire relentlessly poured down on both sides.

… _that said we're not doing well as it is_

She fired off a burst from her Thompson at some more Germans who had broken cover forcing their heads down once more, the heavy thud of the Vickers machine gun the only thing keeping the majority of the Germans at bay.

"Lieutenant we need to move now, this position can't last long! Our left has already collapsed there are going to be more Germans here. " Nico turned her head to see thither occupants behind the boulder arguing fiercely. The ginger haired Sergeant Kousaka was pleading with their current ranking officer, Lieutenant Kilorean to withdraw.

The poor woman was actually their only officer that the company had left.

"We _can't_ sergeant. Our orders were to hold these crossroads, and I intend to follow them!" the words that were supposed to be came out sounding weak, with being fear obvious in the young officer's eyes as more mortar rounds made their presence known.

"Ma'am we haven't got a choice we can't defend this position. There are only twelve of us left at this position." The Sergeant reasoned as another mortar round showered them all with dirt and dust.

The NCO dusted off her beret as she pointed at an old Greek temple in the distance. "If we withdraw there we can hold them off for longer, there's more cover and we'd have better lines of sight." The Sergeant ducked as bullets impacted the boulder sending shards or rock into the air.

"Sergeant!.." the lieutenant's retort was cut off by an explosion to her left. A look of horror dawned on her as she saw that the Vickers was silenced it's crew lying broken over the sandbags blood soaking into the canvas while the gun that was their one of their last lines of defence lay broken, useless, a mangled piece of metal.

"Ma'am we need to go!"

"We stay here!" the muttered reply shocked Nico, as she looked into the officer's eyes seeing the lieutenant broken by the reality of the situation.

 _This is madness we're going to die here._

"Ma'am…" The ginger's reply earned her a withering look of contempt from the blonde officer

"We _will_ hold this ground sergeant, you hear me! You will do whatever it takes to hold this position! Anything else from you and I'll shoot you for cowardice!"

The NCO gritted her teeth as she muttered an acknowledgement before shouting to the few other defenders crouched a few meters away in a ditch bordering on some trees. "Kotori can you see the mortar?"

"Just about…" the high pitched reply was barely audible over the clamour of battle.

"Take it out!" Kousaka screamed at the top of her lungs as yet another shell fell between the two positions.

Nico felt someone shake her shoulder as she watched the sergeant organise a desperate defence. She tore her eyes away to see the lieutenant with a new determination in her eyes.

"Yazawa I need you to go to Sergeant Jones' position and tell her section to attack the German right flank. That's an order" she added threateningly placing her hand on her revolver, the implication clear

Ruby eyes widened as Nico saw the look of the lieutenant's face; her eyes seemingly determined were on closer examination resembled Fish eyes, dead and broken on the inside. The raven haired girl realised that the stress of the situation had caused the officer to lose her grip on reality.

 _None of us are in a position to attack anything at this point in time._

"Ye…" The crack of a rifle followed by a distant explosion interrupted Nico's reply as Kousaka cheered on her friend's marksmanship. But the lieutenant got the gist of it.

Nico steeled herself as she prepared to run out into the landscape of death. The dull monotonous thud of the Bren gun signified that her section mates were still alive as well as that she had a degree of covering fire.

"This is without a doubt the worst thing I've ever done. _Ever."_ She muttered making a mental note that if they made it out of this she was going to punch lieutenant Kilorean in the face charge or no charge

Choosing to focus on the war man pleasant heat of the Sicilian sun, and the interesting foliage such as cypress trees that dotted the landscape as opposed to the fact that if she slowed down or stopped weaving for even a second she could die; Nico ran out from behind the boulder.

The whistling sound of bullets flying overhead was common before but was quickly all too frequent for her tastes as she sprinted across the yellowed grass of the countryside her lungs screaming and her muscles feeling like they were going to be pulled apart as Nico ran as fast as she could. She also tried to keep the fact that the dirt behind and in front of her was raked with mini dirt plumes indicating a bullet had just missed her sometimes by millimetres.

Crashing through a hedge, the intensity of fire died down. Nico breathed a sigh of relief, she had made it out of the immediate kill zone and slowed to a jog adjusting her grip on her Thompson the crackle of gunfire still echoing loudly in her ears.

* * *

As the roof of the small house came into view by the side of the cross roads where Sergeant Jones supposed to be entrenched was it became obvious that something was wrong the smoke rising from the terracotta roof tiles further strengthening Nico's assumptions about the fate of their comrades.

Her suspicions were confirmed as she scrambled down a small slope, flattening herself against the ground she leopard crawled towards a boulder in a few meters away. Peering out from behind the yellowish sandstone slab that hid her from view.

The dull yellow and green of the German soldiers picking their way over the positions of the dead paratroopers was obvious. The house behind them was ablaze and the moans of the seriously wounded rolled across the countryside. These men had held out as long as they could, but judging by how many Germans were down there, they had been overrun by sheer force of numbers.

 _It won't be long before this lot come up on our right flank._

A cold Sensation ran down Nico's spine as she sensed something behind her, the hair on the back of her neck stood up as a shadow crunch fell across the hot orange of the sandstone, the absence of the slight crunch of footsteps making it clear that whoever it was had spotted her. The Raven haired girl stayed stock still giving no indication to the person behind that she had noticed their presence silently pulling out the thin trench knife she kept strapped to her front.

Wheeling around to her right Nico came face to face with a German, a Fallschirmjaeger, a paratrooper like her trained in unarmed combat. She slashed at the rifle he had pointed at the back of her head batting away the barrel, before shoulder charging him.

The loss of balance caused the Fallschirmjaeger to fall back his rifle clattering to the ground a few metres or so away as Nico tackled him to the ground. She needed to keep this quiet lest his friends below her find out and come rushing to help; so using her Tommy gun was out of the question.

As she made to stab her blade into his heart the German grabbed her wrists slowing the blade's advance, his muscles strained against her body weight as Nico pushed down relentlessly trying to end this now.

Before she could make his skin taste cold steel however the German threw Nico to the right her body weight carrying her away, as they both scrambled to their feet the German also pulled out his bayonet. Nico smirked raising her hands in a guard position in front of her face and flipping the knife around so the blade still faced her opponent.

This was now a duel to the death.

Nico made the first move, she pushed off of her back foot stepping ducking underneath the Germans guard slashing at his stomach, the bulky German jumped back the blade barely missing his stomach and slicing open his jacket. Before he could react Nico ducked and rolled away to the side.

She smiled at that manoeuvre, briefly congratulating herself before lunging again targeting the Fallschirmjeager's wrist. He brought the knife down blocking it and throwing Nico off to his left.

Ruby eyes glinted as she saw the German bring the blade down on her back. She twisted in mid-air the two blades meeting with a metallic clash. Her feet slipping in the dirt as she fought to keep her balance, she raised her elbow to block a right hook to her head and swiped at the German's face with her blade.

The Yellow figure leaned back before stabbing at Nico's face. Nico swerved to the side catching his knife arm, as she did so she slashed once more only to have her hand caught.

A liquid trickled down cheek, there was no need to confirm what she already knew, and the bastard had nicked her cheek. The German was smiling at his small victory as the fighters remained locked in a stalemate.

Nico scowled and let go of her opponent's knife arm, The German ducked back and both fighters separated gaining distance they circled each other, sizing their adversary up.

Nico moved first with a kick aimed for one of the Fallschirmjaeger's knees. The German side stepped and taking advantage of Nico's position kicked out one of Nico's legs causing her to fall to the ground, her back jarring painfully as she lay there winded.

Her opponent grinned and raised the knife above his head advancing against the supposedly defenceless Nico. In response to his charge Nico gave him a quick side kick in his groin, getting a very pleasing groan as the German also fell to the floor knife clattering to the ground, both fighters lay there gathering up their thoughts.

Right. Nico exhaled plotting her next move time to get serious

They scrambled to their feet , the paratrooper and the Fallschirmjaeger circling each other once again.

The Fallschirmjeager went on the offensive, slashing and stabbing at Nico each time she dodged, slowly tiring him out with her agility, a few times she parried his thrusts throwing him in the opposite direction, it was obvious she was toying with him. The German paused his assault after a few round of this his blade gripped down by his hip.

"Bleiben bewegungslos du Zicke!" he spat, panting heavily; blue eyes burning with fury.

Nico cocked her head, she wasn't entirely sure what he had said but she was pretty sure it was something like "stay still you bitch" Nico smirked at him gesturing for him to come at her once more. Satisfied she'd made him mad enough

Time to end this.

The German screamed at this barrelling forward his knife aimed at her throat. Nico casually sidestepped and slammed the pommel of her knife against the back of his helmet with a satisfying 'clang'

As he fell forward dazed, Nico dashed up behind him her Knife at his throat.

"Don't mess with the Paras" she whispered in his ear as she drew her knife through his flesh, letting a torrent of blood flood into his lungs.

Nico walked over to her Tommy Gun wiping her hands of the red sticky liquid on her trousers, listening to the sounds of battle intensify in the distance as the Fallschirmjaeger gurgled his last.

* * *

Nico crashed back through the hedge sprinting cover to cover as bullets once again zipped overhead Running to the distant call of Sten fire, she ducked behind a boulder near the one she'd been crouched behind not ten minutes ago to catch her breath.

"Medic!" the call went out indicating their numbers were even lower now.

Nico looked across the battlefield as she saw a shortish girl with a Red Cross armband break cover and rush over to Sergeant Kousaka, red hair bouncing underneath her beret as she ran. Following her with her eyes she surveyed the rest of the scene. Nozomi and Eli hadn't moved still firing away on the Bren, the two girls that were all that was left of C platoon were still firing away with their rifles the one with glasses occasionally having to pull the other back behind cover.

The Lieutenant however had been hit and the Medic was currently trying to drag her to safety under heavy German fire. Nico fired off a burst from her Thompson and rushed towards sergeant Kousaka's position.

"Jones…is gone…loads of Germans…heading this way." Nico reported to the ginger girl in between pants.

The grim look of Kousaka's face intensified.

"The lieutenant's been hit as well…GRENADE!" the NCO's eyes widening as she shouted the warning having seen a stick grenade land a few feet from the injured lieutenant and their medic.

Everyone hit the dirt throwing themselves into some sort of cover…all except the medic.

The grenade exploded with a deafening bang that made Nico's ears ring, she looked as dirt still rained down on them seeing the Lieutenant's head shattered by the explosion the Medic was lying on her back blood blooming through her chest.

Nico watched incredulous as a Blue haired corporal ran out into the middle of the German fire bullets kicking up dirt all around her as she called what was presumably the medic's name.

"Maki? Maki? Maki? Wake up damn it!" the medic appeared to come around wincing at the pain, both of the wound and as she was picked up by the Corporal who ran behind another boulder bullets tracking her progress as she did.

Sergeant Kousaka muttered something under her breath before shouting to the remaining soldiers.

"Listen up! We're going to die if we stay here! As the highest ranking person here I'm taking charge! We're pulling back to that temple! Fire and movement! OK?" a few nods were visible as well as shouted acknowledgements from those who were scattered across the battlefield.

"On my mark you provide covering fire while we move to the temple! We'll make our last stand there!" The ginger sergeant shouted in Nozomi and Eli's direction.

"Right Section! prepare to move!" Everyone got ready to run like hell the moment the order was given.

Sergeant Kousaka slung her Sten over her shoulder cupping her hands to her mouth as she delivered the final part of the order.

"MOVE!"

The section ran for their lives to the soundtrack of gunfire and explosions, to give birth to a legend.

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 **A/N: so hope that gives a taste of the combat that I am aiming for, let me know what you think in reviews follows favourites etc. It's nice to be noticed you know?**

 **One other thing Every chapter or so I will change perspectives so the two in a row with Nico this makes with chapter 1 in terms of POV is a fluke**

 **for those wondering what Kotori armed with a sniper did to take out the mortar I may tell if you guess right in chapter 5 (or 6 depends if people have guessed by tuesday)**

 **Glossary:**

 **Thompson/Tommy Gun: a sub-machine gun famous for it's use by gangsters in the prohibition era, and it's use by British and American forces throughout WW2**

 **Fallschirmjaeger: German Paratroopers, these guys took heavy losses invading Crete in 1941 and afterwards didn't see many combat jumps. regardless they were still very well trained and much better than most normal German infantry. fun fact their invasion of Crete which stopped their combat Jumps actually gave birth to the British Airborne forces.**

 **Vickers: a belt fed MAchine gun used in WW1 and WW2 by British troops it was based off of the Maxim design.**


	3. Chapter 1

**A/N: So it begins the story of our beloved idols as British Paratroopers in WW2. What better combination than violent war and romance right? ... hope you enjoy.**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 1

4th June 1944 RAF Blakehill Farm, Wiltshire

 _Nico saw the light turn green and stood in the doorway, looking down on the verdant field's miles below her she felt the brief anticipation and fear that she felt every time she jumped. The fast wind buffeted her form as she held onto the sides of the doorway the noise of the aircraft's engines deafening her so that she nearly couldn't hear the order._

" _Green light on! Go!"_

 _Nico flung herself into the empty air and felt the air rush by her as she entered free-fall briefly. The adrenaline causing briefest feeling of exhilaration, before she felt her a sharp pull on and her whole body jerked as the static line pulled open her parachute. From this point on her training took over checking to see if the chute had opened properly and searching for a suitable landing spot. But also she looked around enjoying the view that only a paratrooper could enjoy the landscape stretching for miles that sound of the wind as she descended towards the earth._

 _This feeling these few moments were what made all the horrendous training all the possibility of death worth it._

* * *

 _Or at least that's how it should've gone today_. Nico looked out from the hangar bitterly at the pouring rain, it hadn't let up for days now. she was starting to look back fondly on _Sicily_ of all places because despite getting that stupid scar there she at least had _some_ sunshine. Practice jump after practice jump had been cancelled and today was no exception. The grey clouds and the rain had made everything soaking from the airstrip to the tents; even some of the airbase's buildings had started leaking!

Nico sighed and turned back into the bustling hangar. The company had been assembled anyway and told to prepare for a practice jump _even though everyone knows it was never going to happen_. Thus everyone was milling around in the hangar packing parachutes and fiddling with bits of kit, the silk billowing on the ground making the hangar hard to navigate. The majority of the company lounged around bored and as sick of the rain as Nico was.

She caught snippets of conversation as she sauntered back to her section. Mostly it was just rumours about the impending invasion and the decisions the brass hats were taking. That was to be expected stick a bunch of bored girls in a hangar on the eve of an invasion and gossip was certain to abound. Nico sighed as she heard someone swear that the invasion of Normandy that they'd been told about was a deception plan to fool German agents who might've infiltrated the paras and that _Norway_ of all places was the real target.

Nico cracked a little smile as this particular theory was loudly interrupted by an NCO shouting at Pvt. Ebisuzawa on the proper use of an entrenching tool and how it was " _not_ a bloody _bayonet_ ".

"Niccochi over here."

Another sigh escaped Nico's lips as she turned towards her section, seeing the purple haired figure that was currently standing up waving and yelling in her direction

 _God does she have to be so conspicuous_ Nico thought frustrated at her friend's behaviour, she doubled up the pace of her journey towards her friends

Nico knew that Nozomi wouldn't stop embarrassing the both of them until she paid a visit to her section. Muse Section was a supposedly legendary force inside not only the parachute regiments but the entire British army, after the action in Scilly the previous year that had earned their nickname their popularity had only increased after they formed a band that performed regularly on and off base to keep up morale.

The current lockdown however meant that they hadn't performed off base in what felt like years, even Maki who had never been too keen on starlets and stuff like performing was getting restless.

Nico was thrown out of her train of thought however by a mass of silk that had attached itself to her foot.

"Bloody thing! Who leaves their parachute in the middle of the floor anyway?" Nico muttered. Before a blush spread over her face as she realised that it was _her_ parachute. The section was lounging around, Nozomi and Eli were still packing, Kotori polishing the lens on her scope, Umi and Maki were just sat there looking at their assembled kit bags and parachutes.

A lazy atmosphere pervaded over all of them, even Rin had been ground down by boredom and was simply fiddling with her bayonet the ground littered with the dappled green and brown of their smocks and a few of the red berets for which the paratroopers were looked up at the Raven haired girl currently struggling with her own parachute

"Really I wonder who _would_ do something as _careless_ as that" the redhead noted, her voice containing that hint of nonchalance that always annoyed Nico. She hadn't fought and scraped her way up from the slums of the East End survived the disease and poverty into the red devils just to be talked down to by some Harley street rich girl.

"leave her alone Maki" the Blue haired girl sat next to her pleaded, amber eyes clearly tired from having been kept up all night.

The redhead twirled her hair between her fingers "humph, but…but" Maki struggled to find an answer to the Corporal sat beside her.

"I know I know" Umi leant her head on Maki's shoulder. "We're all bored and tense…But its fine as long as you've got me" she whispered.

Umi jumped up from Maki's shoulder waving her arms, both girls immediately starting to blush at the sentence that Umi had let slip in her exhausted state.

"W-W-W-What I mean is….Ummmm I meant you as in the entire section. Anything else would be shameless!" the NCO squeaked

Maki's face was an even brighter shad of scarlet than her hair "O-O-O-Of course! W-W-W-What else would you mean!"

An awkward atmosphere pervaded the section the silence only broken by Nozomi's titters

While both girls thought that they could hide their relationship well it was quite obvious to the rest of the team. The stolen glances, the discreet hand holding, the blushes that were ever present when they were close together the signs were as plain as day to anyone with a pair of eyes. Despite her occasional animosity with the redhead Nico wished them both the best, but she still found it humorous that Umi and Maki thought that they had to hide it.

"I know if you're all so bored then maybe you could help me and Nozomi make the Bren fit in the weapon bag." Eli said trying to sidestep the issue.

"It's not my fault they make these things so small!" Nozomi exclaimed while trying to shove the machine gun into a canvas bag.

"Perhaps we don't need to take all this extra stuff in the weapon bag" Kotori suggested taking out a crystal ball from the bag

"Are you saying we don't need to know the future?" Nozomi looked at the squad aghast

"No-no but maybe we don't _need_ a crystal ball, I think tarot cards should be enough" Eli noted dragging out a large glass sphere at least the size of her head.

"How can you be sure? " from the look of shock on her Nico was sure that Nozomi couldn't have looked more betrayed if they all handed her over to the Germans.

"They were enough in Sicily" Nico noted, receiving a dagger-like glare from the offended machine gunner in return.

"Guys, Guys I think we should all just calm down its just pre-op nerves" the ashen haired sniper appealed trying to diffuse the tension that had accumulated.

"Kotori's right we're all just on edge because of the invasion, and because we didn't get to jump today." Umi joined her friend in keeping the peace.

"I guess…I guess we should just wait and see what Honoka found out" a still blushing Maki sighed

Nozomi closed her eyes and exhaled "yeah you're right."

Time passed slowly while the squad made small talk about things like their next performance and the dwindling availability of alcohol due to the RAF flyboys on base.

The idle chatter on the usefulness or rather uselessness of the yanks was interrupted by a person running at them from the other side of the hangar. Hanayo was soon stood in front of them panting, Her soaking wet beret and smock making it clear she'd run through the rain without shelter. The girls all stood up Rin going to support her friend who looked like she was on the verge of was clear she was trying to say something in between breaths.

"B-B-Big news everyone!"

The team stared at her mystified

"The invasion…it's on for tomorrow, we jump…tomorrow night" Hanayo's face was flushed from the exercise.

"How do you know this?" Nico remained sceptical thinking that the Brunette had been taken in by the rumours flying around the hangar.

"Captain Minami told us" Hanayo paused taking a gulp of air "She heard it from the Colonel. Ike has definitely committed himself for an invasion of the 6th."

"She's right you know." The section turned to look at their Sergeant a Lively girl with Hair the colour of fire looking at them with barely contained excitement. "It's on for tomorrow! Finally no more waiting!" Honoka jumped punching the air at the news she had heard.

"Honoka…where did you even go" Kotori looked at the NCO with concern in her eyes.

"Sorry Kotori-chan but we ran into your mother while wandering around the base. She told us the briefing is going to be tomorrow but because you're in our section she gave us a heads up." Kotori seemed half satisfied with that answer, but, Nico noted, the look of concern didn't entirely fade from her face.

"So Rin finally gets to show the Germans how to dance ~nya" Rin exclaimed fingering her spike-bayonet a little too joyously. The cat-like girl soon joined Honoka in her display of enthusiasm the two girls twirling around each other practically laughing.

"Shall we give the troops one final dose of the world's number one Starlet & co?" Nico crowed, as she always did and for once she wasn't interrupted by her friends.

Instead they all agreed and as it was _finally_ announced that the jump was cancelled they section stayed behind as the hangar emptied and Honoka talked to the squad about the performance tonight.

"Right so everyone clear on what we're doing?" the sergeant questioned, being greeted by nods of understanding

"Ok let's go out there and show them what we've got!" Nico shouted "Hehehe eat your heart out Marilyn Monroe."

* * *

The news of the invasion given the next morning was met by a muted cheer of relief from the assembled battalion, everyone letting out all the stress that had accumulated by being cooped up on the base with no jumps for a while. The briefing was exactly as Honoka expected since they had been provided with a few details in the run-up to the invasion. It was simply a finalisation of the Company's role in the British Airborne operation and one last review of the targets, given by the grey haired commander of the Company Captain Minami.

In essence the Company would be expected to destroy or capture three bridges as well as secure the battalion rendezvous in conjunction with the rest of the battalion. After that it was simply a case of "hold until relieved."

Honoka exited the briefing while having her Corporal, Umi, fill her in on the parts that she'd slept through, accompanied by the usual exasperated sighs. The elation she had felt last night at finally getting to see action had disappeared. It was replaced by anxiety at the fact that they were going to see combat for the first time in little under a year. It was written on her friend's faces as well. All were anxious to walk into the aircraft and jump into the unknown.

* * *

 **A/N: Next stop Operation Overlord (strictly speaking Operation Tonga) and a new perspective.**

 **Glossary:**

 **Entrenching tool: a spade, but a military one that often could be sharpened.**

 **Spike Bayonet: unlike the sword bayonets seen in WW1 spike bayonets aren't shaped like knives and are designed primarily for stabbing.**


	4. Chapter 2

Muse section chapter 2

5th June 1944 Somewhere over the English Channel

Amber eyes marvelled at the sight before them. The greatest naval armada ever assembled was basking in the moonlight below her. All in all over one hundred and fifty thousand men; naval vessels from Torpedo boat to Battleship were travelling below her to Normandy. She was part of the air armada that was going ahead to disrupt and distract the German forces, the sky was filled with transports and gliders, the same sight would be seen all along the Normandy coast tonight.

Umi considered the odd beauty of it all as she leant on the door frame of the door in the side of the Dakota. The roar of the engines making communication nearly impossible the rush of the wind chilling her to the bone, yet she stayed. It was a habit she had developed in North Africa that on the way to a drop as the last woman in the squad to jump she stayed by the door for the flight often with the door itself open, like it was tonight, although she didn't seem like the kind of person to enjoy it, Umi relished in the buzz that she got from standing in the door looking down upon the earth.

It was something that you didn't get in the old Whitleys or the Halifaxes. The small feeling of power, of control she got when she stood looking upon the ground was akin to that that she got when she strung an arrow. It was her way of killing pre-operation nerves.

Umi looked back into the plane's belly she noted a few of her section mates were all reacting in the same way they always did Kotori was simply looking out the window opposite her, playing with one of the straps on her chest. Conveniently Honoka was sat beside this window as well But Umi knew Kotori would deny any ulterior motive.

As the section sniper, or as she preferred to be called markswoman, Kotori often hung back in combat shooting enemy officers and decapitating their command, her hands that used to be refined at sewing the latest fashions were now perfectly steady for killing. Umi had noticed long ago that she spent a lot of time with Honoka and despite her role Kotori tried to stick to their sergeant like glue.

Umi certainly wasn't blind to the looks that the sniper's golden eyes had been giving their sergeant, at times practically fawning over her, for Umi it was a little shameless but she also thought it was sweet. The only problem was how dense the ginger haired girl was. Umi just hoped Kotori wouldn't get hurt.

The two more energetic squad members were gawking out of the windows and pointing out every little thing they could see, Honoka was especially enthusiastic, as always.

Umi rolled her eyes at the display wandering exactly how she managed to keep those three stripes on her arm.

Rin on the other hand was a tad more subdued, but only by a fraction if Hanayo wasn't asleep next to her dreaming of white rice (judging by the drool and blissful expression) Rin would probably be bothering her as well.

Yet Honoka's and Rin's energy and in Rin's case her cat-like athleticism was what made both of them so great in combat. Her fast reflexes had also earned Rin the role of the Section's runner, where she relayed messages between the team when they split up, and her affinity for cold steel made her the close quarter's expert as well. If Honoka hadn't forbade it on pain of being taken off active duty Rin would probably _jump_ with her bayonet fixed to her Sten.

The Bren team on the other hand were being all too affectionate. Nozomi and Eli, or rather just Nozomi, were cooing over each other whispering and giggling like school girls despite the fact that they shouldn't be able to hear each other over the drone of the engines outside.

Just looking at them was enough to make Umi turn as red as the beret that was stashed in her bag. The two of them were sweet together but they were a little too public about it for Umi's taste, having had a very conservative upbringing with regards to that sort of thing.

Their closeness however meant that they operated as one in the field; if it was needed they would always provide fire at exactly the right point. The Girls also acted as surrogate big sisters for the rest of the section and authority figures despite the lack of rank. They were certainly good enough to be NCOs being singled out many times, but each time both had turned it down knowing they'd have to transfer to another section if they took the stripes offered to them.

Yet they were too close now, neither would want to risk being separated from one another. Despite the embarrassment she felt Umi knew that it was their way of dealing with the nerves, still she had to avert her gaze. Unlike Nico she couldn't deal with the couple by sleeping.

That left the redheaded Medic. Umi's heart raced a little as she indulged herself in the sleeping form of the girl. The moonlight reflecting off of her ruby tresses giving her hair and skin a resemblance to alabaster, the cute smile on her face as she slept was one Umi had seen before yet she knew she would always treasure it and the golden feeling it sent to her heart.

Her feelings for the pianist of their group went so much deeper than respect, perhaps even than love. Yet she would never admit it to herself, she just didn't function that way. It had been the biggest obstacle to their relationship; her shyness and Maki's Tsundere tendencies made a perfect storm of taking it slow. But they had got this far since their meeting at the tail end of Tunisia to the point where they were both able to admire the object of her affections without fainting or insulting each other; although a blush was still very visible on her cheeks, complimented by the softest of smiles.

It was perhaps a rare perfect moment that Umi wanted to engrave on her memory, just in case… just in case the worst happened.

That moment however was shattered by the crump of anti-aircraft fire. Umi gripped the door frame as she observed they were no longer over the channel. The fields below her and the AA fire meant they were nearing their drop zone.

The aircraft banked sharply to the right. The section was aroused from their usual routines and stared out of the window at the scene before them.

Orange tracers streaked across the sky, lighting up the clouds above them like lightning. Bursts of flak exploded all around like orange fireworks that were a lot more deadly than their apparent inaccuracy suggested. Search lights scoured the sky searching for the aircraft in great beams of pearl coloured was another scene with an odd, if deadly, beauty to it that Umi couldn't help admire.

The formation of transports that had now detached the gliders they were towing started to jink around the sky hoping to avoid and confuse the AA Fire. It worked for some but not for all.

The section watched in solemn silence as one Dakota plunged towards the ground, one of its engines on fire. The smoke and flame producing a spiral as it corkscrewed towards the ground. It disappeared into a cloud bank, obscuring the squad's view of the plane's ultimate fate.

Another transport was even more unlucky to receive a direct hit by a shell. The aircraft exploded into two halves in a brilliant orange fireball. The grisly sight of burning bodies that spilled out of the hunks of metal that used to be an aircraft, falling to earth produced a collective thought that none said but all knew the others were thinking.

 _Are we next?_

The aircraft began to slow down and began its descent towards the drop zone the AA fire increased in intensity. It was obvious but a singular thought ran through Umi's mind.

" _It's time_ "

As the No.2 in command of the section she was on door duty and that meant that she had to give out the orders.

"Hook up!" even though she shouted the noise of AA Fire and the drone of the engines was overwhelming.

The squad all stood in unison as the aircraft clutching the hooks that would open their chutes. They clipped them onto the rail that was above them as Umi did likewise.

Honoka walked to the door to begin the briefing, as everyone checked the parachute of the girl in front of them Honoka walked slowly down the aircraft giving everyone's equipment the once over while shouting the final briefing. It was a well-rehearsed routine that ran like clockwork

"Prepare For Action!"

"Right we're about to drop into France!" Honoka yelled to the rest of the team. "You all know the exit drill! Count to three! Then check your canopy! Once you're on the ground try to meet up with everyone else, but realistically we're going to be scattered so any Allied unit will do! You know our targets but we'll go over them once we're on the ground. Plans can change!"

Honoka finished her speech as she made her way back up re-checking equipment before hooking up by the door. She was always the first out even in training.

A red light came on illuminating the cabin in a blood red glow that did little to alleviate the anxiety the section felt.

"Action Stations!" Umi yelled the penultimate order

"Oh and one other thing…break a leg girls!" Honoka's slightly morbid idea of a pep talk got a few nervous laughs out of the section.

The crimson light turned green bathing the girls in the bright colour all emotion drained from their faces as their training took over each girl a blank faced robot.

Umi yelled to the squad "Green on! Go! Go!"

The section responded immediately like clockwork beginning to jump out of the aircraft each girl pushing the one in front of her to prevent delays and make sure that nerves didn't take over, they were jumping even if they didn't want to.

The squad rapidly filed out into the blankness within a few seconds most of them were out of the door into the blackness travelling feet first into hell.

Even as noise and death from flack burst around them due to the months of training they'd put up with before this most vital of operations and the years of experience before that, everything was going smoothly.

A violent explosion suddenly shook the aircraft as Nico stood in the door. The shudder throwing her out of the plane arms flailing even before Umi could see how everything went she knew instinctively it wouldn't be a good landing.

Herself and Maki both had to grip the metal ribs of the plane in order to keep their balance, both girls staring briefly in awe at the smoke that was billowing from the left engine and metal shards that had perforated the side of the plane. If they hadn't jumped the section would've mostly been caught in the killing zone.

The light turned red once more, the jump window was over supposedly any attempt now was prohibited.

" _That's not right we haven't jumped yet!"_ a panicked confusion gripped Umi as she un-hooked her chute running to the cockpit to shout at the pilots as the plane shuddered banking slightly.

"Hey what's going on…" her tirade died in her mouth as she opened the door the explosion had been a shell that had exploded in front of the cockpit. The shrapnel had torn through both pilots. Blood coated the seats windscreen and the instruments.

The Pilot lay dead in her chair her chest blossoming with black stains that were expanding slowly across her flying jacket; the dim light of the instruments adding to the horror of what she was witnessing.

The Co-pilot was alive barely blood was streaming down his face and one arm hung limply at his side, the glistening mess of sinew and muscle that was his shoulder resembling the pulled-pork that the Americans were so fond of. He was straining against the instruments trying to keep the aircraft level. He looked at Umi.

"What are you doing?" he asked weakly. The light quickly fading from his dull blue eyes

"The light…the light turned red" Umi's composure was shocked by what had happened, despite it all she hated blood and she hadn't seen this sort of carnage in a year.

"Jump…I can't hold on for much longer!" the dying man ordered.

Umi nodded before turning around and running up the aircraft hooking on as she went.

"Maki! We've Gotta GO!" she yelled to the medic who stood confused by the open door; waiting for the blue haired girl.

Maki nodded once taking stock of the situation.

"See you on the ground." She propelled herself forward using the door frame flinging herself feet first into the night.

Temporarily alone in the fuselage Umi reached the door, seeing the white of Maki's chute open behind the aircraft, something struck her as she flung herself into the inky blackness of the night .

" _We're_ really _going to be lost when we get down there."_

* * *

 **A/N: So our dynamic duo are going to be lost for a bit. Also as bullets start flying I make no promises about everyone surviving. for those who made it this far thank you. see you in a week.**

 **a note about orders. if I can find it I use the contemporary British orders hence the unfamiliar orders in the plane to those who've seen Band of Brothers.**

 **Glossary**

 **Whitley: Armstrong Whitworth Whitley a bomber used in the late inter-war period/early WW2 by the RAF, re-purposed by the Airborne Forces for their training and first jumps over the UK**

 **Halifax: Handley page Halifax- Four engined heavy bomber like the Lancaster used by RAF Bomber command and transport command alike , the only plae capable of towing a Hamilcar heavy glider.**

 **Dakota: C-47 Dakota, a re-purposed civilian airliner built in the US, one of the best transports of the war. this one is the plane used by Muse as they have windows.**

 **Flack- shells that burst in the air the shrapnel from which was used to damage planes**

 **Static line: a line that deploys the Parachute automatically.**


	5. Chapter 3

**A/N: well we're back this time I promise you some action after the set up so worry not loyal fans.**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 3

5th June 1944 DZ 'L' Normandy

Honoka enjoyed the Rush of the air in her face as she fell slowly towards the earth, looking above her the great white sentinel above her rustled in the sky above her, silently delivering her to safety. The chutes of her section visible in her peripheral vision as dots against the night sky, she kept her knees together and braced for impact as she expertly manipulated the lines above finding a clear landing area, a field devoid of both trees and Germans, the only tricky part might be that large hedge to her right.

The ground rushed up to meet her as Honoka flared her chute and prepared to absorb the impact by rolling. Despite her efforts the impact was still jarring to her body as she rolled onto her side the parachute coating the ground with a soft sigh, the wind causing it to slowly tug on her form.

Honoka quickly disconnected the parachute unlocking her harness and let the mass of silk billow in the slight breeze, as it drifted across the fresh earth. She didn't need to concern herself with it anymore.

Rising to her feet Honoka followed the rope attached to her ankles finding her weapon bags that contained her weapons that she'd released in mid-air. Rummaging through the bags she found her webbing and kit bag, slinging them over her shoulders she began to look less like the overladen mess that she had resembled for the past few hours and more like a normal girl. _Albeit one who was a soldier with a gun and webbing._

Clutching her Sten she shoved a magazine into the side of it she paused taking her time to appreciate the Mk. V the thing was a relative work of art compared to what she was used to. The smooth wooden stock, the comfortable fore-grip along with the better sights, all marked it out as a gun that had had _care_ put into its design and manufacture. _Unlike those piece of crap Mk. IIs that look like something Frankenstein's plumber might use._

Honoka smiled at her gun, whipping out her bayonet and fixing it to the end increasing the already menacing look it gave off. She stopped and cursed herself briefly for getting distracted examining her surroundings, something she should've done when she landed.

 _The others should've dropped near-by, so it should be easy to find them_. She picked herself up standing up in the field, checking to make sure she hadn't missed any injuries before heading off in the likely direction of any of her section who if they were going to be anywhere were going to be beyond that hedge.

As she looked for a gate or opening in the hedge that she could use Honoka could hear a rustling in the hedge. She dropped to her knee and took aim with her gun pulling the cocking handle back and releasing it slowly so as to not alert whoever it was to her presence. The branches and leaves shook as the rustling grew louder. Honoka zeroed her sights in on the branches.

*click*

The ginger girl frowned curious at the noise that emanated from the hedge.

*click*

There was the noise again. It sounded familiar, that was when she remembered the device that Umi had given her after the briefing. It looked like a lighter but actually made that clicking noise that she was hearing now, it was supposed to enable identification of friendly forces Umi had called it a cricket. _I really need to stay awake in briefings now._ The ginger chided herself internally

Honoka dropped her gun letting it hang by its sling, and fumbled around her smock pockets for the small brass device. Fishing it out she pressed it twice answering the call of the person in the bushes.

*click* *click*

"Oh thank god" she heard a soft voice whisper, as the paratrooper in the hedge disentangled herself from the foliage.

Honoka Rushed up to greet the now familiar face of the section's sniper, tackling her to the ground as she hugged her.

"Kotori-chan!" the sergeant's blue eyes lighting up at the sight of her childhood friend.

"Honoka-chan…are you okay." The yellow eyes of the markswoman looked at her friend with the same mix of happiness and concern that she always did.

"Yeah I'm fine" Honoka nodded her head energetically, "I'm just glad that you're okay is all."

A smile graced Kotori's lips as Honoka pushed herself off of her friend.

"So shall we find the others?" Honoka handed the grey haired girl her Rifle which had been knocked out of her hand.

"Yep let's go."

The search for the majority of their compatriots didn't take long. 10 minutes later the section with the exception of Nico, Umi and Maki was crouched around a map of the area working out where they were.

"Well if you look here that hill is the same as that one on the map" Eli pointed to the looming mound in the distance before tracing some contours on the map.

"Yeah and Rin thinks that church is this one on the map ~nya." Rin chipped in pointing to the cross on the crumpled piece of paper.

"Well if that's all true then we must be here" Nozomi pointed to a field on the edge of a forest in the middle of nowhere.

"So then the Battalion rendezvous is about four miles away in the village of Manneils…which is…in that direction. " Honoka pointed towards the southeast as she double checked the compass open in front of her.

"We're still missing three though…" Kotori said making the glaring absence in their midst even more evident.

"Yeah…" Honoka looked down at the map hiding the worry on her face from her squad mates. It'd only bring down their morale to see their energetic leader worry. She clenched her fist dispelling the expression from her face.

She looked up her usual smile painted on her face

"But I'm sure we'll find them, they can all look after themselves."

"Ummm…actually I think I saw a parachute come down over there… near that field." Hanayo pointed as she pushed her glasses up her nose and corrected her rifle on her shoulder. The anxiety of section lessened a little, but did not disappear entirely shoulders still tense with worry.

"Then we should look for them they'll be around here somewhere; we haven't even looked that hard yet." Nozomi fumbled with her pockets, her Bren on her shoulder swaying dangerously as she was preoccupied.

The purple haired girl finally producing a tarot card that she had stashed in her breast pocket, she smiled turning around the card revealing the card to be the lovers

"My, looks like the signs are good." Eli rolled her eyes frustrated with her companion's antics.

"Right then let's go." Honoka folded up the map "we'll search that field and the surrounding farmland for about 15 minutes before heading towards the Rendezvous. Shout if you find anything."

The section all stood up a brief chatter rising as they paired off while Honoka delegated directions to search for the other team members.

* * *

Honoka and Kotori started towards a wooded copse at the edge of the search area. Both girls walked in silence. Kotori repeatedly glancing over at Honoka, walking much closer than she normally would. The silence was another hallmark of the weird atmosphere Honoka got from her friend whenever they were alone, punctuated by what sounded like stuttered attempts at speech from her ashen haired friend. Sometimes Honoka thought it was as though Kotori was in love with her. _That can't be right can it? I mean we're just friends after all. She can't see me in that way, because I don't…_

The ginger sergeant gloomily contemplated thepossibleoutcomes if she was wrong, whatever the prospects were if she was they weren't good for their friendship.

Shaking her head, clearing her head of the melancholy thoughts; Honoka turned her mind to the task at hand. As she did so they entered the darkened trees, the branches and logs littering the floor cast shadows and fed already hungry imaginations.

Muttered curses fell out of the sergeant's mouth, as she stumbled over the twisted gnarled roots that coated the ground, a situation worsened by the low growing trees and shrubs that caught on the netting and camouflage of her helmet.

She sighed _there's no way anyone survived landing in here even if they did choose this as a spot._

Honoka was thankful for her smock as a slight breeze blew that sharpened the already cool night air. But the darkness was stifling, and the chill didn't do much to help dull Honoka's instincts that someone was watching her.

The search appeared fruitless from her perspective however, it looked like they were alone in the wood and there was no sign that anyone had landed near here.

"Hey Honoka" Kotori gestured to her friend to come over here, shouldering her rifle. "Take a look at this."

"A parachute…?" Honoka looked at the discarded strings lying in a ditch on the ground "looks like I was wrong then someone _did_ land near here."

"Mmhmm." Kotori narrowed her eyes looking beyond the treeline.

"What is it Kotori-chan?" Honoka looked briefly at her friend before following her gaze. A small gasp escaped her lips as she saw a silhouette in the field beyond.

Her instincts kicked in, she dropped to her knee levelling her Sten at the figure before she could register whether the owner of the outline was friend or foe.

Kotori took a look through her scope at the distant person; her finger hovered over the trigger uncertainly.

Honoka held her breath her eyes darting between her friend's reaction and the figure in the field beyond.

Eventually the sniper let out the breath that she had been holding to steady the rifle, and lowered the gun. The tension in the air dispersed with this subtle confirmation that the outline shuffling in the grass was no threat.

"It's ok that's Nico-chan out there." Gesturing towards the figure that was limping across their field of vision

"Are you sure Kotori? How can you tell?"

"Well I _do_ have a scope Honoka-chan they _tend_ to make things at a distance easier to see, plus she's already wearing her beret so I can see her twin-tails."

"Ok then…" Honoka stood up and letting her Sten fall at her side, she ran into the field waving "OI NICO-CHAN! WE'RE OVER HERE!"

Kotori shook her head lightly smiling as she saw the NCO tackled the Raven haired girl to the ground in hug, causing a cry of surprise and pain. "Honoka take it easy…Nico-chan might be injured" she said as her friend started to babble over how hard it was to find her.

"Oh you're right…Nico are you Ok?"

"Of Course I'm not didn't you see me limping? I sprained my ankle on landing!"

"Oh, you did? Sorry, I didn't notice. Kotori was the one who spotted you actually…" Honoka laughed anxiously scratching the back of her neck nervously as she apologised to Nico.

"Humph well you shouldn't be so careless…honestly I can't believe you're our Sergeant."

"How did you get injured anyway Nico-chan?" kotori asked trying to get the conversation back on track.

Nico's face turned dark "that's…that's something that I should tell the whole section." Nico looked Honoka in the eye "Sergeant Kousaka"

"I understand, we'll head back to the squad…Kotori keep an eye out for the rest of them."

"Got it."

* * *

The squad were huddled around Nico as a light drizzle fell on the squad darkening the colour of the berets that some had swapped their helmets for.

"So why does the story of you being injured require all of us Nicocchi? Nozomi raised an eyebrow as she searched Nico's red eyes for an answer.

"The injury is because of a bad landing and it isn't much anyway just a sprained ankle." As Nico bore holes into Nozomi's skull

"That's true…we did find her parachute in the middle of some trees" the ashen haired sniper added

"Is that all ~nya? We've all had bad landings, even on operations. Rin remembers when Kayo-chin nearly broke her arm in Tunisia." The lively ginger grabbed Hanayo hugging her tightly.

"Rin-chan's right. You didn't need to tell us that all together Nico…Rin-chan I can't breathe." Honoka smirked at the last outburst from Hanayo, trying to extract herself from her companion's grip.

"Yeah but the reason for the bad landing is what's important...I made a bad exit I was thrown out of the plane by an explosion. Umi and Maki hadn't jumped yet, I didn't see any chutes after my canopy opened…the right wing was on fire…" Nico let the meaning of the words sink in

"So you mean…" Eli began haltingly. "You mean that they didn't make it?"

Nico nodded.

A stunned silence fell on the squad, the distant rumble of anti-aircraft fire and explosions contrasting with the slight patter of rain on the few helmets of the section.

Tears were in the eyes of the both the younger members. Eli clenched her fists trying to keep a straight face. Honoka stood up her eyes dark in the low light. She walked three paces out of the huddled section before taking out the map, and pointing off into the distance.

"Let's go, we need to get to the battalion rendezvous before sun-up."

"But what about Umi and Maki?" Eli asked her leader.

"They'll be fine…they've made it I'm sure they wouldn't leave us just like that. We'll look for them while we complete our objectives."

The section slowly stood up. The golden eyed markswoman caught a glimpse of her friend brushing away a tear.

"Honoka-chan…" she began before Honoka turned around, a smile painted on her face.

"Its fine Kotori-chan it's just the rain that's all. Umi and Maki aren't so weak as to let some Germans get the better of them" the squad started to perk up. Rin and Hanayo wiped their eyes.

"I guess it can't be helped." Nico unslung her Sten "We'll just have to bail out that useless Tsundere then…"

"Come on…it's pointless if they're trying to find us and we're just sat here." Eli gripped her rifle. "We need to put in the effort to find them as well, if we don't stick together we aren't Muse. The fact that we all look out for each other and stick together is what makes us, us. So we should believe in them to get through it." The section nodded in agreement, slowly rising from the ground the former fire reignited in their eyes.

"Now let's go find our friends." Honoka punched her hand into the air.

 _Hang in there Umi-chan Maki-chan…We'll find you._

* * *

 **A/N: in case you hadn't noticed the story will alternate chapters between a pair and the rest of the squad (for Normandy at least)**

 **Glossary**

 **Webbing: the pouches and strips of cloth to support them that contain a soldier's ammunition and equipment such as rations water and first aid kits.**

 **Cricket: as mentioned its a small brass clicker issued to allied forces (mostly paras) on D-Day so they could tell friend from foe**

 **that should be it PM me if there's anything you want to ask**


	6. Chapter 4

**A/N: UmiMaki chapter :)**

 **(other pairings will also get their time in the sun)**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 4

June 5th 1944 Somewhere in Normandy

 _Darkness._

Maki groggily opened her eyes; her head swam as she tried to take in her surroundings.

 _Where am I? What was I doing? Is this London? Where is everyone?_

Her brain registered something like a voice calling out to her in hushed tones.

"Maki?" it said, the noise pleasant to Maki's ears, like a soothing lullaby.

Trees loomed out from the darkness the sharp rough bark of pine trees providing little information as to her questions. She had the feeling that she was being suspended from somewhere there was too much tension in her harness near her legs and arms.

"Maki?" there was the voice again; its softness was calling to her, coaxing her out of the woolliness that she still felt like the first rays of dawn.

It slowly dawned on Maki's still fuzzy mind.

 _I'm a paratrooper right…did I jump? I must've done…but what happened_

"Maki!" the voice hissed sharper this time s though the owner had had enough.

She gave a small gasp as it all came flooding back to her; the invasion, the explosion in the plane, the hurried exit and the frantic search for a good landing spot when she had jumped from a plane that was definitely below the minimum safe altitude for such a thing, followed swiftly by the pain of branches as her search failed, all dominated by a concern for the owner of the voice.

"Umi? Where are you?" Maki whispered to the darkness

"Maki for god's sake I'm down here!"

Maki looked down, seeing that she was suspended about a metre above Umi, Maki sighed at the sight partly out of exasperation, but partly out of admiration at the sight before her. Umi's hair escaping in long navy waves from underneath the maroon beret placed on her head, amber eyes laced with concern at the dangling redhead and a passionate determination that was ever present whatever the Bluenette was thinking. Although the Denison smocks were never flattering, Umi managed to pull it off the fabric doing a poor job of hiding her corporal's figure from Maki's eyes. She giggled briefly at the thought

 _My corporal huh? I guess she is mine in a way._

"Maki snap out of it. Are you ok?" Umi asked crossly, her face clearly unamused by Maki's daydreaming

Maki's head throbbed as she brought one up to inspect her body, causing a sharp hiss of pain to escape from her lips. She felt no sign of blood but the throbbing was getting worse.

"No external injuries but I think I banged my head on the way down." Umi's face softened a little at the news but she still didn't look placated.

"You're lucky that was it. Look at where you landed."

Maki allowed her head to loll back resting on her pack, sighing as she looked up at the scene above her. Sharp dagger-like outcrops of wood that were once branches jutted out from the tree's trunk, her parachute now a ripped and torn mess was snagged on at least two of these, preventing her from reaching the ground and hanging her like a puppet in mid-air. The bark being scrapped off of one of the branches implied that particular branch was the cause of her blow to the head

 _She's right; it was a miracle that I wasn't impaled on one of those. I could've ended up like my parachute._

"My god Maki, how are we going to get you down from there?" "You're going to have to climb down." Umi put her hands on her hips and sighed exasperatedly.

Maki baulked at the thought.

"You know I'm no good at climbing!" She exclaimed "plus there's no way someone good at climbing could get down from here the branches stop halfway!"

"Then the only other option is for you to cut loose your kit bag, and have me catch you." Umi Suggested.

"I guess it can't be helped then…" Maki sighed drawing her bayonet.

She looked to the ground, amethyst eyes coolly judging the distance that she might have to fall, and the possible injuries that might occur if this went wrong.

"…Heads up" she called to the girl below as she sliced through the rope connecting her kit bag to her feet with the blade in her hand. The dull thud that followed reverberating throughout the quiet forest.

Maki inhaled slowly steading herself as she grabbed her webbing and began to slice through fraying material gave suddenly leaving Maki hanging by only half of her chute.

The parachutist swayed in the still night for a bit, her legs flailing air as she struggled to get a secure hold on the second set of lines. Catching them with some difficulty she took her weight onto her own arm and sliced through the remaining attachment to her parachute.

"Ready?" Maki called out to the waiting NCO below her.

"For you? Always…" The reply was instantaneous. The subtle reassurance and warm sentiment filled Maki with a feeling of comfort that she got from a cup of tea on a cold day.

 _Damnit why does she have make things sound so romantic?_ She smiled; her face turning a slight pink as she closed her eyes and let go of the support, falling towards the earth below her. _Not that I mind though…_

The sensation of freefall was a brief one, accompanied by the small adrenaline rush that remained no matter how many times Maki jumped from much higher heights.

The comforting feel of Umi's outstretched arms was what arrested her fall towards the ground; with Umi catching Maki in both arms, holding her like a groom would his bride.

Maki slowly opened her eyes seeing the glowing smile of the girl she loved, Maki smiled back the warmth inside of her intensifying.

Her amethyst eyes locking with Umi's sunny amber, allowing Maki to lose herself in the deep shine of emotions in her eyes. The sweet moment was cut short however as the intimacy brought the blood rushing to her face. Maki frowned at herself inwardly; annoyed at not yet being used to these feelings despite having known her Corporal for over a year.

Umi too was trying to hide her growing embarrassment from her lover and as she set Maki down the brief romance between the two was gone.

Umi's eyes softened and smiled as she saw Maki trying to avoid showing her flushed face, the Tsundere twirling her hair around her fingers as usual.

Umi giggled softly as the moment brought back old memories about her beloved subordinate. Memories of their first meeting. She watched as the girl unpacked her kit checking it wasn't damaged before slinging it on

The cool night air caused a shiver to run up Umi's arms and body as she reminisced. She found herself craving Maki's gentle heat, despite the cold exterior she put on the redhead was actually Umi's one source of comfort in this world, from her fiery red hair to her eyes that glinted with the aura of the evening star. She was close to the others but nothing made her feel as home as she did around Maki.

"Hey Maki…" the amber eyed girl spoke to the back of the girl in front of her. She wrapped her arms around the shoulders of the redhead and resting her chin gently her shoulder hugging her to her body.

Umi closed her eyes savouring Maki's heat, her light against the cold dark of the forest surrounding them. "Remember when we first met?" she whispered softly into Maki's ear.

The sudden move caused Maki's eyes to widen in surprise briefly, the heat from Umi's body enveloping her like a blanket. Her blush returning to her face as she tentatively relaxed into the embrace, placing her hand on one of Umi's.

The Medic nodded "Y-Yeah it was like what happened just now wasn't it?"

The soft laughter of Umi echoed in Maki's ear, the heat from her breath tickling her chin "it was…wasn't it" she said nostalgically, her eyes opening slightly looking off to one side.

"Except I was the one holding you then…" Maki sighed slightly, contentedly, spinning around so she was facing Umi and placing her arms around her neck, pulling her companion in savouring her gentle radiance.

The blush on Maki's face intensified as she gazed into her companion's sun-like eyes "you looked so cute back then…still do now." the inaudible whisper a sign that the redhead was letting her guard down.

The power that Umi had over her, the power to make her honest with her feelings was overwhelming. It still scared Maki, the fact that every waking moment she thought about Umi, the fact that she kept searching her surroundings when she wasn't by her side, the fact that she felt incomplete without her. Sometimes it was all too much. Sometimes the mask she wore slipped, and the cause was always the girl she was holding now.

The space between them suddenly turned into a vacuum, both girls under the influence of an overwhelming urge to squeeze the space between them out of existence. They pulled each other closer, sparks dancing across Maki's skin as her wrists came into contact with the nape of Umi's neck.

Umi blushed at Maki's statement, "don't be so shameless" she protested weakly as she moved even closer to Maki, her eyes half closed. She was savouring the sights in front of her, her heart rate increasing with every passing second that she had to wait for the inevitable.

A shaft of moonlight bathed the forest as the ghostly satellite appeared from behind the clouds, for a brief moment the redhead could see her lover as clear as day. The ethereal light bathed Umi in a glow that illuminated half of her features, for Maki to see clearly. Her midnight blue hair cascaded out of her helmet blending in with the darkness, her eyes that looked like two smouldering embers combined with the moonlight to make it look as though she radiating warmth, like a fire in a log cabin the smell of cinnamon hanging around her and the heat of the comforting flames inviting Maki in. her lips reflected the light with a slight hint of pink, making them look even more soft, even more luscious, even more _enticing_.

Maki's focus kept switching between Umi's eyes and her lips. Her entire mind was dedicated to the girl in front of her at this time as their faces edged closer together. The cool crisp air doing little to dampen the haziness in both girls' minds as the raw feelings they held for one another took over.

The air between them was thicker than honey both hesitantly, tentatively closing the gap. Maki closed her eyes as she finally captured Umi's lips with her own, the softness and the sweet taste of the kiss was breath-taking, her head began to fill, her body felt lighter, Umi kissed back tentatively at first before being overcome with a passion few knew about. Her fingers clutching at the fabric of Maki's clothes desperately, needily pulling Maki into her, as though she was trying to absorb the stubborn redhead.

Maki wanted more; she needed more, the feeling of Umi's lips on hers, of Umi's skin on hers. It was like some kind of drug, some kind of spell. Yet a part of her subconscious shouted at her, cutting through the effects of the enchantment; drawing Maki's attention back to the real world…to her doubts. She felt as though she would burst if she held the kiss for any longer, if she allowed the embrace to continue. As though all the love that she kept bottled up for Umi would escape and she would bear her soul to the girl in front of her completely, and give her entire self over to her; every flaw and every imperfection.

Yet Maki was terrified. For all her façade Maki was terrified of being alone, of being abandoned, rejected. Every time she used every scrap of her will-power to break away after only what was normally only a brief kiss, trying to keep some kind of distance between them for the sake of the walls she had built around her heart. This time was no different as Maki tried to push her lover away after only a few brief pecks

Umi looked at Maki surprised at the break in contact, hurt even, as she looked down at the ground her fringe falling over her eyes obscuring them in shadow. The redhead regretted what she had done she knew that when she tried to keep distance between them it hurt Umi, but she couldn't help herself. The crushing guilt left a bitter taste in the redhead's mouth, made even bitterer by the lingering sweetness left by Umi's lips.

 _Why am I such a coward? Why can't I be honest?_

The medic closed her eyes, trying to stop herself from showing her emotions; she breathed slowly counting back from ten.

The redhead slowly opened her eyes to be greeted by the sight of Umi gazing at her face again; her entire face still dusted by a light blush as she smiled warmly at her companion. The warm feeling contrasting painfully with the guilt that Maki felt.

Her eyes welled up, only to be stopped by Umi caressing the side of her face, wiping the tears from her lover's eyes with her thumb, something that only intensified as Maki brushed a stray strand of blue hair over Umi's ear.

"It's ok…I know that sometimes you're not ready yet…but that was still longer than the last time."

Maki nodded numbly, Umi was right. She'd heard the first part before, Umi's apologies normally doing little else other than feed her self-loathing, but the last part gave her hope, hope that she could stop being so reserved.

"See sometimes even you can still be…Shameless" Umi mumbled into the empty space between them, her blush intensifying as she breathed the last word into Maki's ear.

Umi leaned in again pressing her lips momentarily against Maki's. Maki was caught off guard by the sudden warmth of the kiss realising that her companion was doing it to reassure her. To dispel her guilt. Maki knew Umi wasn't expecting a response and simply stood dumbstruck as Umi broke away her mind racing.

The Corporal shakily exhaled a breath that she'd been keeping in for way too long, before looking around twitchily as though she was only just noticing where they were.

"Come on Maki-chan, we should get going…we can't stay like this forever there are German patrols about." Umi mumbled to her lover.

Maki nodded her heart lifted slightly by her consort's actions as she walked over to her kit bag that was lying in the rough dirt and dead pine needles that covered he forest floor in a blanket.

She retrieved her medical supplies and Sten. An awkward silence pervaded the air around the pair, Umi standing looking into the forest her hand over her heart, ragged breaths reaching Maki's ear every now and then. Maki could hear the blue haired girl muttering to herself but she couldn't make it out herself.

She clipped her jump helmet onto the back of her belt and corrected her beret that now rested on her head. She tapped Umi on the shoulder making the NCO jump a little.

"We ready to go Umi?" the now kitted out Maki asked.

"Yeah let's go…" Umi shifted uncomfortably before regaining her senses "There's a German patrol in the area and we need to find a map. If we ambush them we could possibly steal their map and link up with some form of friendly forces."

* * *

The drone of aircraft and the crump of German artillery fire continued nearly incessantly as Maki walked a few paces behind her NCO, she gripped her Sten tightly, ready to deal with any possible threats. Bursts of tracer fire were lighting up the sky more frequently now as the enemy high command got its act together, rallied its forces and more soldiers woke up from their slumber boosting the thinly stretched night duty.

Yet despite the distant sounds of war, the sound of crickets and soft breeze that wafted through the knee high grass in this lonely corner of France reminded Maki of her evening walks through Richmond Park with her family although the darkness meant it wasn't the best comparison. Maki sighed reminiscing of a simpler time, when her parents would get home from the hospital and they would all go out together as one.

 _Before all this happened. Before the violence, before they left me. Before the bombing..._

The redhead clenched her fists fighting against the wave of emotion that came attached with those memories.

 _If only we had been home then…I could've helped…they wouldn't have had to suffer like that. We could've helped._

The rapid fire sound of a German AA Gun broke Maki out of her reverie shattering the calm, with its noise like a thousand milk bottles shattering in quick succession. The flashes of light coming from the other side of some trees and the loudness of the sound implied that the emplacement was nearby.

Maki was about to continue on across the field until she saw Umi begin to wander towards thesharp flashes of light emanating from the other side of the forest, like a moth drawn towards a flame, she walked almost as though she was in a trance, heavy footed paying no heed to what may be around her, her Sten hanging limply at her side.

"Corporal!" Maki hissed at the bluenette, getting no response.

Umi continued her march towards the gun.

"Corporal Sonoda!" she hissed once more. Again Umi ignored her call. Maki ran to catch up to the NCO. "Umi what the hell are you doing?!" Maki shouted as she grabbed Umi's shoulder.

Umi glanced at Maki, glaring at her, annoyed at something.

"Shhhh. Do you want to get us caught? Don't shout!" the orders were curt and the force behind them slightly shocked Maki.

"Ok, Ok but what _are_ you doing?" Maki pressed her question.

"What do you think?" Umi sighed "I'm going to recce that AA gun and see if we might be able to take it out. What did it look like I was doing?"

The medic began to twirl her hair around her fingers again suddenly self-conscious. "It looked like you were in some sort of trance, like you were under a spell…"

Umi chuckled softly, the warm sound echoing around the field cutting through the noise of war like a ray of sun cutting through a winter fog.

"Next time pay attention to my hand signals, instead of daydreaming." She giggled at her subordinate.

Maki shifted uncomfortably at the lapse in her attention span. "It's not my fault…promise to keep me in the loop from now on though…" she mumbled

Umi's expression became more serious as she turned to face their target. "Ok it's a deal…now let's scout out that position."

The two girls walked into the small woods discovering the gun to be on the other side of a hedgerow at the other end of the woods. They went prone so as to better conceal their position. The guns itself was a quad-barrelled 20mm and luckily it was currently facing away from them exposing its crew to their weapons, and what's more along with its crew the only other occupant of the field was the truck used to tow the gun that sat near to the emplacement itself.

"I count at least seven peons and one officer, maybe more on the other side of the gun." Maki whispered to Umi as the latter's honey coloured eyes surveyed the scene.

"I agree shall we call it about ten in all?" Maki nodded in reply. "Umi's eyes flicked towards her companion. "What's your weapon status?" she asked quietly.

"You're planning an assault without knowing what weapons we have?!" Maki mock gasped. "Shouldn't you already know that being the NCO on duty?" she teased, lightly punching Umi's shoulder.

"Yeah well we can't all be as good as Honoka at that sort of thing, plus…" Umi glanced down at the two chevrons on her arm "…I'm only a corporal remember?"

"yeah, yeah I remember." Maki twirled her hair around her fingers "I've got my Sten and about four Mills bombs."

"right well there's my Sten and a couple Mills bombs too as well as…"Umi fiddled around her webbing feeling the contents of one of the pouches "…two gammon grenades. That makes two Stens 6 mills bombs and two gammon grenades"

"Are we sure that we're enough to take them down?" Maki asked not liking the numerical odds of their attack "You're always quoting Clausewitz about how the defence is positive the offence negative".

"Their defensive position is utter crap. They've got hedges on both sides from which we can attack behind. Plus their guards are too close together; one gammon grenade could take most of them out and damage the gun. If I make my way around that side into that field…"Umi gestured pointing around the gun to the left while you make your way to the closest hedgerow we could do this. Two grenades, a burst of sub-machine gun fire and we're done."

The medic looked on, awed by her corporal's plan. "You say you're not as good at this as Honoka and then you go and come up with a plan that might not get us killed. You really are special, you know that Umi?"

Umi blushed at the compliment, before clearing her throat. "W-Well, that's the plan, when these explode…" she pulled out a Gammon grenade and a Mills bomb from one of her pouches "….you open up. Ok?"

Maki nodded, checking her Sten to make sure she had ammo in it; she pulled the cocking handle before getting to her feet. "See you soon. Umi. Try not to die, I'd be lonely without you" She said as she kissed her companions cheek

As she smiled at the look on Umi's face that she had caused; she made her own way out of the woods stealthily crouched, like a panther; she stalked her way towards the hedge, placing herself in amongst the foliage so she had a clear line on sight onto her target.

 _Umi was right about their position,_ the medic thought _any good sentry would've spotted me by now and it is way too easy to ambush them. One burst would take out at least four or five of them._ Maki sat watching the crew scurry around the gun getting ammunition reloading and firing off bursts into the cloud speckled sky it all ran like well-oiled clockwork.

Yet despite the almost hypnotic quality of it all, Maki didn't lose focus again she kept listening in amongst the noise of the gun and the barked orders in German, for the two thuds that would signal the start of their little trap.

Soon she heard it the tiniest thud in amidst the noise.

Immediately Maki ducked her face down covering her head with her arm and braced for the inevitable explosion, she heard one of the soldiers ask his comrades a question before a deafening explosion ripped through their bodies, and made even the redhead's ears ring. _There goes the gammon grenade._ She thought coldly

As she looked up at the scene seeing what targets to prioritise, Maki was greeted by a scene of horror. The explosive had landed slap bang in the middle of the group, blowing to bits one man and maiming three others. The blood and bits of flesh mixed with the dirt thrown up be the explosion; coating the ground and the remaining soldiers who had been pushed to the ground by the shock wave stunned.

Maki opened up with her Sten, the rippling sound of bullets splitting the silence that followed the explosion. Her gun taking down two more of the shocked and bloodied soldiers, blood sprayed from the holes created as their bodies slumped to the floor.

The noise of gun fire muffled a second thud that heralded a second explosion. The grenade exploded at the foot of a German with less force than the first, sending up clumps of dirt into the air and blowing the legs off one unfortunate soul who had started to get up, both legs and owner being sent flying into the air spraying the now ubiquitous red liquid into the air before landing with a fleshy 'thwomp'.

The redhead broke cover as she gunned down the only immediate threat left; the German officer clutched his belly as Maki pumped a hail of fire into it. She quickly sprinted across the carnage taking cover behind the gun. Blood had sprayed onto the metal making it gleam in the moonlight a piece of flesh that was stuck to it slowly slid down the smooth grey surface creating a squeaking noise as it did so.

Maki took one deep breath feeling the adrenaline pump through her system as she smelled the acrid smell of cordite drifting from the barrel of her Sten.

She peered around the corner of her cover only to be greeted by sparks as two rounds impacted the gunshield with a metallic clang that made her flinch. Two Germans were lying prone on the other side of the AA gun, shots continued to pepper the metal gunshield and the surrounding earth, forcing Maki to keep her head down.

 _Shit if they keep me kept pinned down they could flank me_. The medic panicked briefly realising the danger stuck her gun round the shield and fired a burst at her two aggressors blind, hoping to briefly stop their onslaught so she could attack. It did nothing. Rounds continued to zip through the air until the shooting stopped for a brief second. Maki seized her opportunity and crouching down threw herself around the corner taking aim at the two soldiers who were both reloading.

"Amateurs" She smirked as she squeezed the trigger, expecting to finish this with a quick blast from her gun.

Instead her eyes widened with horror as her gun emitted a distinctive click meant she had to dive back into cover. "Empty?!" she fumed at her weapon and her carelessness at her arrogance, as she fumbled with her magazine discarding the empty pieces of metal. Bullets continued their onslaught through the air clanging against her cover and thudding against the dirt.

Suddenly a second burst of machine gun fire tore through the air. Maki chanced a look to see Umi advancing towards the two Germans firing steady aimed bursts as she did so bullets kicking up plumes of earth around the two remaining riflemen. The panicked shouts arose as they tried to switch their fire

Maki looked on as one of the German's heads suddenly jerked up a splat of blood exiting the back of it as one of Umi's bullets found it's mark, his comrade decided that had had enough and started to run for it. The redhead quickly replaced the magazine in the side of her gun before swinging back around the corner firing off a burst at the retreating figure. Umi crouched down firing from one knee and the combined fire of the two girls soon meant that the man running away collapsed, dead, blood leaking into the ground.

The bluenette got up and smiled at Maki, her beret slightly askew and a leaf sticking out of her hair. "Well…that was hectic." Umi smiled once more.

Maki got up hands still trembling from the adrenaline and ears still ringing at the explosions, she weakly returned Umi's smile. "That was a slight understatement." She said meekly

"Are you ok? You don't look so good." Amber eyes looked on, concerned.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine…not everyone handles combat as well as you do Umi." Maki sighed.

"Hmmmm. Well let's see if we can't find that map, shall we." Umi extended her hand towards Maki who was still crouching behind the AA gun.

The redhead nodded gently, and took her lover's hand blushing as she was pulled up from the ground. Both girls started walking to where the initial engagement was. The stopped briefly staring silently at the scene of carnage before them.

Umi dropped her Sten and continued walking Maki stopped, wanting to look a bit longer in grim fascination at what humanity could achieve with a little science. Body parts scattered across the stage and pools of black blood stained the ground in the moonlight their surroundings coated in the gore of what used to be people spattered on haphazardly like some crazed child's painting.

Maki stopped as she spied movement from one of the bodies on the ground.

 _Is that officer still alive?_

The world seemed to move in slow motion as Maki looked closer at the blood soaked figure on the ground. He had his Luger drawn and was clearly struggling to aim it, his effort causing more blood to spurt out of his wounds. But the gun was level and right now it was pointing at…

"UMI!" Maki screamed at her friend

"What is it Maki-chan?" Umi turned to face Maki, oblivious to the danger behind her.

 _No! This can't be happening! This is like some bad dream!_

The pistol shot echoed through the air, the sound echoing through the silence briefly.

"UMI!"

* * *

 **A/N: This will be the last double upload for a while. as i think I've set the scene and got enough action to attract attention for now.**

 **also: Muwhahahahaha you will all have to wait to see what happens next. leave a review so I know what you all think.**

 **Glossary**

 **Mills Bomb: British hand grenade used in WW1 and WW2 nicknamed the mills bomb after its designer**

 **Gammon Grenade: a grenade with a _lot_ of explosives in it kept in a stockinette bag beneath the grenade used by British special forces during WW2 **

**Luger: german pistol issued in WW1 to officers was being phased out by WW2 in favour of the Walther P38 hence its rarity and prized by Allied soldiers as souvenirs.**


	7. Chapter 5

**A/N: So now we return to the main squad on their mission outside the Battalion rendezvous, the Village of Manneils**

 **and thanks to my 10 fans (followers count damnit) you guys are the best.**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 5

 _August 1928, Village of Lightseed, Hampshire_

" _Kotori-chan hurry up" Honoka called out to her as she ran into the forest._

" _Honoka-chan, were not supposed to go in there, it's dangerous! Umi-chan, do something to stop her." Kotori tugged on Umi's dress pleading with the blue haired girl._

" _Kotori's right Honoka! We should go, My mother will be wondering where we are!"_

" _God, you two are so boring." Honoka pouted, "It'll be fun! And your mum is teaching Archery or ballroom or something Umi-chan so it's ok!" before either girl could reply Honoka dashed into the trees. Umi followed her into the darkness_

" _Umi-chan…Honoka-chan wait up." Kotori ran after her friends into the trees._

" _Honoka-chan…" Kotori looked around as the sunlight filtered down through the trees, creating beams of light that illuminated the moss covered bark of the woods. Yet as Kotori looked around she couldn't find her friends._

 _A shuffling sound behind her drew Kotori's attention; she spun around looking into beady black eyes. She held her breath as she froze. The boar squealed as a flash of anger shot through its eyes, infuriated at this new intruder into is territory._

 _The hairy pig pawed at the ground, Kotori realised that it was going to charge. She backed up slowly trying to get away from the danger. But the boar's gaze was fixed on her, her back hit the bark of a tree she knew there was no escape._

" _Someone...anyone please help me…Honoka-chan" tears began to fall from her eyes as Kotori curled up into a ball in a desperate effort to protect herself._

" _Hey pig! Leave my friend alone!" Kotori looked up to see Honoka standing in between her and the boar her arms stretched out protecting Kotori. The boar stared at the new addition for a while before deciding that it wasn't worth it, and leaving._

" _Honoka-chan" Kotori whispered enthralled by her friend's aura_

" _Kotori-chan are you ok?" Honoka offered her hand to her friend._

" _Honoka-chan" Kotori by now was sobbing, as she brought Honoka into a crushing hug "…I was so scared."_

" _It's ok now Kotori-chan, now let's go Umi-chan's waiting for us." Honoka began dragging Kotori through the forest._

 _Honoka was still her normal energetic self, but Kotori noted that Honoka kept holding her hand all the way._

" _Nearly there Kotori-chan" Honoka looked back at the ashen haired girl beaming. Umi appeared from over the crest of a hill in front of them._

" _Where were you two?"_

" _Sorry Umi-chan I had to find Kotori." Honoka bowed apologetically, letting go of Kotori's hand._

" _Well come on." Umi motioned to the two of them to join her over the hill._

 _Kotori stood on the crest of the hill on the edge of the forest, what she saw took her breath away. Their village was bathed in the glow of the setting sun below them. Orange sunlight illuminating the crops that swayed in the gentle summer breeze that blew._

 _Kotori felt something warm clasp her hand. She looked to see that Honoka was once again holding her hand the setting sun. "It's fine Kotori-chan if you're ever scared again. I'll be there."_

* * *

5th June 1944, Near Caen, Normandy

Kotori wondered why she remembered that incident as she crouched in a ditch at the edge of a hedgerow gazing out into the dark. She sighed _I guess that was the point I really started to fall for her._ She looked around her seeing the seven remaining members of her section spread out along the ditch-line as their sergeant made her decision.

The Battalion rendezvous of the village of Manneils was loomed just beyond them in the dark. Their objective was close the problem was there was _someone_ between them and it, the question was who?

"Are you sure that you can't see them clearly Kotori-chan?" the ginger haired girl asked her friend.

Taupe hair swayed as Kotori shook her head. "Sorry Honoka, I can't tell if they're friend or foe."

"Perhaps we should move up slowly and use the cricket." Eli suggested, pulling out the dull brass object.

"Yeah but what if it goes wrong?" Hanayo asked timidly.

"Well what's the point in having it if it alerts the enemy? It should be fine" Nico hissed quietly.

"But who do we send? If it does go south there is a chance that the person we send could be killed." Nozomi leaned nonchalantly on the butt of her machine gun that was trained on the suspicious figures that were shuffling around in the dark.

The section fell silent, contemplating the fact that they might lose more of their number. Nervous glances shot around in the dark each girl gauging the willingness and bravery of the others to risk her life.

"I'll go." Honoka stood up adjusting her helmet and equipment. With a determined look on her face, and a glint in her eyes that reminded the entire squad why those three chevrons were on her arm.  
The sniper's hand shot out grabbing her friend's sleeve.

"Honoka-chan, be careful." _Remember the promise you made to me…_

"Of course I'll be careful, even if I'm not I've got you all watching over me, haven't I?" Honoka smiled to her friend, hoping to assuage her worry.

"Get out there before you trigger another death flag!" Nico started pushing Honoka towards the other end of the field.

The team went back to their positions all readying their weapons staring into the unknown; all were tense, expecting any threat to appear at any time. Kotori looked through her scope seeing the object of her affections crouched in the middle of the grass, a faint click could be heard, the reply however was inaudible.

Kotori held her breath until she saw Honoka through her scope give the field sign for the section to join her. The sniper breathed a sigh of relief, running across the field to the ever present background noise of sporadic gunfire and flak.

The section reunited on the outskirts of the village taking cover in yet another ditch just before the garden of one of the houses. There they all deployed in a perimeter defence within earshot of a Purple haired figure and their Sergeant who was being given a breakdown of the current situation.

Lieutenant Fumiko Yamamoto gestured to the three figures behind her while finishing her introduction. "…so as you can see the entire battalion, and quite probably the entire division is scattered across all of bloody France. I heard from a few guys with suspiciously American accents that the 3rd brigade went into action at Merville with over 450 men absent." Fumiko sighed "You guys and those three are all that we've got as far as B Company's concerned." She put her hand on her forehead and sighed once more.

"So you mean we've only got us and a PIAT team with us?" Nozomi asked

"Mika and Hideko are great girls they're kind of like family to me; but yeah, that's it in terms of manpower."

"At this rate we'll be blowing up that bridge alone." Eli rubbed her chin thoughtfully as she also digested the situation.

The girl with reddish hair and a PIAT on her shoulder piped up "well you've got me and Mika to help take the town while Jenkins can cover the rear." She said waving in the direction of a blonde man who appeared to be perpetually sulky.

Nico held up her hand. "Wait what does Hideko mean by _take the town_?"

Honoka smiled awkwardly, rubbing the back of her neck. "Sorry Kotori-chan Lieutenant Yamamoto mentioned this to me but I forgot to tell you all. The Jerries still occupy the village."

A collective cry went up from the squad "euuuueh?"

"Sorry guys, military intelligence isn't all it's cracked up to be" Fumiko bowed apologetically

"Humph, if you ask me everyone above the rank of Lance-Corporal is an idiot." The blonde man spoke up only to be shot down by a combined "Shut up Jenkins" from the other three girls.

"What are we facing in terms of manpower?" emerald eyes twinkled with mischief as Nozomi drew a card from her breast pocket.

"We didn't get a good look but at least one armoured car and one Spandau nest in the central square before we were nearly spotted and had to leg it." Mika answered.

"If we take them out we basically have the village. Sergeant Kousaka I'll take my team around the west of the village and clear it out, you deal with the square." Fumiko ordered.

"Understood." Honoka thought for a moment, as Fumiko took Mika and Hideko before disappearing into the village Jenkins followed grumbling. "Let's get a look at the situation." Honoka said with finality. Nico, Kotori you're with me, we'll scout out the square.

* * *

Kotori followed the ginger and the raven haired girl into the house behind them. It was deserted, and judging by the dust on the surfaces it had been for some time. The soft creak of the floorboards and doors they opened sounded deafening, as they moved to the front of the house, they paused after even the smallest sounds fearful they had been discovered. They were lucky the enemy sentries were more interested in chatting than keeping an eye on their surroundings. Honoka opened the blackout curtains a crack letting a beam of light through as they looked out the window. Honoka motioned that she wanted Nico to check upstairs.

The black twin-tails bounced slightly as Nico nodded before creeping up the old wooden steps.

The sniper scooched up to Honoka looking through the same crack in the curtains, due to her closeness to the NCO Kotori found her heart rate increasing and her mind only slightly on the scene outside

The square it was a simple affair, which was surrounded by a mix of single and two storey buildings. The old fountain in the middle of the square had seen better days and didn't look like it had seen running water since 1940; the water that was there was stagnant and covered with algae. The armoured car parked next to it also didn't look like it had seen much action since the fall of France, rust was clearly visible through the peeling paint, yet the only part that Kotori noticed was that the guns were kept in good order even from this distance it was clear they were well oiled and in working order.

As Kotori analysed it she noticed what looked like the town hall opposite them had sandbags piled around its entrance that implied that was the location of the machine gun Fumiko's team had mentioned. German troops milled around the square chatting and looking up at the night sky.

Honoka was mumbling to herself before she paced in front of the window while making sure she kept to the shadows cast by the moon and the few lights that the Germans kept hidden from the skies. Occasionally she would make sweeping motions with her arms as she scrutinized the scene outside.

All of a sudden she grabbed Kotori's hand and stuck her head into the stairwell motioning for Nico to follow. They waited for a few seconds before making their way back to the section outside, still each sound they made sounding like it was the crash of a thousand drums.

Kotori looked at the remainder of the squad still lying on the ground deployed in the perimeter defence formation. The squads eyes shifted to Honoka as she signalled for them to get up.

"Right, this is going to be interesting." She noted "Nozomi and Eli I want you two to set up the Bren in one of the houses on the left side of the square. Ok?"

"Right" came the simultaneous reply from the two machine gunners, their response eliciting a few giggles from the section.

"Me and Kotori will be providing more covering fire from this house here." Honoka jerked her thumb at the building behind them before gesturing at the remainder of the squad. "The rest of you need to move into the square and take them out, Rin I'll leave the armour to you."

"Got it." The excitement was clearly visible on Rin's face as she fiddled with various parts of her kit restlessly.

"Ok that's the plan. With luck the Lieutenant's team will meet up with us and we can secure the place. Any questions?" Honoka looked at the reactions of each squad member the hand of a certain Orange haired private shot up

"Can Rin use her bayonet nya~?"a collective groan rippled through the section it was a question that they all expected to be honest. Honoka sighed a little.

"Yes but I'd rather you don't make it you're _primary_ weapon. We don't want another repeat of Sicily."

"Got it~" Rin punched her hand into the air, Kotori found her penchant for cold steel a little disturbing at times to be truthful, although as a sniper she couldn't judge.

Nozomi Picked up her Machine gun as the rest of the squad started loading their weapons and adjusting their equipment. Kotori simply looked at Honoka; it never ceased to amaze her how she switched from being a capable tactician to their normal lively leader. _Perhaps they aren't different personalities at all, merely two sides of the same coin._ She thought solemnly.

"Are we all ready?" Honoka asked. "We start the attack in fifteen minutes so be in position by then. It looks like the outer buildings are unoccupied, but we can't be certain. Be on guard."

Honoka smiled the seriousness temporarily gone as she put her hand into the middle of the group like she always did before any big event. "let's stick it to 'em!"

The section piled their hands in giving a small cheer, as they raised them out again smiles on their faces as they went to face death.

* * *

The tension was palpable as Kotori lay down on the second floor of the house she had been in a few minutes ago. Nico was downstairs and Honoka lay beside her. She looked through her scope once more, the crosshairs still resting on the head of the German officer, but her eyes kept darting to the left scanning the buildings for any sign of movement that would signal that their friends were ready.

The sniper breathed slowly, there was nothing there yet. She checked her positioning, breathing and natural direction once more, as any marksman should. All were perfect and all lined up on the officer strutting around atop his armoured car. He was a true example of "Aryan Superiority" as the Nazis called it. Blonde hair blue eyes and an arrogance that went with it, His wrinkled pugnacious face and beady piggy eyes made him look like someone had put a blonde wig on a pig. Even from the distance they were at it was clear that his own men hated this particular officer.

Kotori sighed, _I doubt that'll make it any easier to forget his face,_ it was the curse of her role that she had the best look at her enemy's face and it wasn't just some shape to be fired at, it reminded her that these were people, even the man who looked more fascistic than Mussolini only with terrible hair and an almost orange complexion, down there. She smiled slightly, _ok maybe I won't regret him as much as the other's._

Movement from her friend caught her eye, Honoka moved up to the window. Kotori drank in the sight of her crush her heart fluttered whenever she did this; the way that her hair looked like a crown of fire that framed her face, the red beret on top of her hair only strengthening to the illusion. Her face appeared statuesque in the dim light emanating from the window, emphasising the stark beauty contained in her profile, from her nose and her soft cheekbones to her chin. Kotori never failed to be struck by her friend's attractiveness. Yet all attention was drawn to her warm blue eyes that so often gleamed with emotion.

"Kotori-chan?" Honoka whispered tearing Kotori away from her reverie, "Are you ok? You were looking at me funny."

Kotori immediately blushed, shrinking under Honoka's gaze the azure eyes intense "N-no…I'm fine its just…just-"

"You're nervous right. Well no time for that the others are ready ." Honoka pointed to a cafe on the left side. "the others are already in positon, and it's nearly time as well."

Kotori checked her watch, Honoka was right. she quickly readjusted her position training the rifle on the German officer before cycling the bolt putting a round in the chamber.

"Ready?" Honoka asked,

The brown haired sniper nodded slightly so as to not disturb her rifle, she steadied her breathing. As she saw Rin move in the window out of the corner of her eye she counted herself in as she squeezed the trigger.

"3…2…1." There was a slight delay before the distinctive "Crack" emanated from the barrel. The officer's head snapped back as bits of skull and blood splatted against the grey metal of the car. His broken corpse fell against the armour too before the pull of gravity took its hold and he landed face first on the floor.

Silence reigned for a few seconds as the soldiers stared at their commander's body. Then all hell broke loose. Nozomi's Bren gun opened up on the square Bullets pinging off of the cobbles and tearing through the German troops with gruesome efficiency, the occasional rifle fire beside her was obviously Eli doing her bit. Men and masonry fell as the dirt kicked up by the Bren followed a deadly arc through the square scything down the slower soldiers.

Kotori swiftly worked the bolt targeting another German who had begun shouting orders. Once more her rifle barked. The soldier fell blood spurting from the new hole in his neck like water from a fountain, his carotid artery shattered by her bullet. She was dimly aware that Honoka had started firing down on the square, spaying casings everywhere, the occasional burning heat sometimes disturbing Kotori. The chatter of sub-machine gun fire downstairs meant Nico had joined in too adding to the mess of lead that was plastering the square. Yet none of this mattered to Kotori, the mist had taken over her now, in essence she was a machine that killed and moved until the battle stopped. She worked the bolt again before sending another soul down gurgling as blood filled his lungs via the new hole in his chest.

"Kotori cover Rin!" Honoka shouted gesturing to the flash of green and brown that had just broken cover and was making a beeline for the armoured car.

Hanayo too broke cover and dashed towards one of the benches surrounding the square taking use of the temporary cover to pour rifle fire into the Germans with a speed that rivalled any machine gun.

Honoka made some comment about the 'Mad Minute' before raining death down upon the few Germans brave enough to show their heads

Rin on the other hand simply ran straight for the enemy, one of the few Germans not in cover or dead received a bayonet to the gut as Rin barrelled into him, the momentum of her charge pushing the man onto the ground where Rin removed her Sten from his stomach. Watching briefly as the red flower blossomed on her victim, before resuming her charge grenade in hand. She scrambled up the front of the armoured car and threw in the green metal ball of death into the top before scampering away. The sound of rounds impacting stone, metal and bodies echoed all around her, while the air filled with the buzzing of bullets in flight.

A few seconds later, the section marvelled as the armoured car exploded. Flames and smoke mushroomed out of the chassis tearing the hardened steel to pieces. Deadly shrapnel flew in all directions as metal shards and splinters embedded themselves everywhere. The noise made Kotori's ears ring and obscured the square in a haze of orange tinted flame that lingered for a few seconds, the sounds of gunfire continuing to increase as the Germans slowly assembled a response and the three privates fought for their lives.

The smoke cleared gradually revealing the twisted remains of what was the armoured car, still burning illuminating the square in an eerie orange glow accompanied by dancing shadows. Yet the scene revealed wasn't pretty, Nico and Hanayo were pinned down by the MG that had opened up. Rin meanwhile was trapped behind the fountain in the middle of the square by the reinforcements

"Kotori!" Honoka shook her shoulder, "I'm going down there! Keep up the covering fire." Honoka shouted as she ran down the stairs

"Hono-" Kotori started her protest only to see her friend running out of the house below her. The markswoman grunted in frustration at the recklessness of her friend before working the bolt once more, felling a German soldier who had been keeping Rin pinned down with bursts from his MP40.

Nozomi's machine gun by this point had run out of targets and ammo so the balance of powe sung even further in the enemy's favour as the two women were struggling to re-position it. Eli was trying her beset to keep the enemy off their backs as Nozomi fixed up a stable firing position, but there was only so much one rifle could do.

Kotori gritted her teeth in frustration as her seventh target fell to the ground, blood trickling from his head. She switched her focus to the German machine gun keeping her friends pinned down, the operators concealed behind sandbags for protection. The sniper smirked briefly a dark thought running through her head; _that's sweet, they think that'll protect them._

She shot through the opening which the gun was firing through, adjusting slightly she predicted where the gunners would be. Her rifle cracked silencing the gun; although she couldn't see it Kotori knew she had hit her mark. She shifted her aim to the left shooting off one more round to take out the loader and prevent him taking up the gun and continuing to cause trouble for her squad mates.

Under Honoka's coordination the rest of the squad had started to inch their way forward, using liberal amounts of covering fire and swift movement from cover to cover they slowly pushed their way up the square towards the town hall.

As Kotori yanked open the bolt to reload she saw that Eli and Nozomi were laying down fire for what had to be the final push. the few german soldiers were falling back to the town hall under a hail of steady concentrated fire She watched from on high as the remaining soldiers were either gunned down by Nico or carefully eliminated by the rapid rifle fire of the two blondes. Rin often charged in as though her gun wasn't loaded preferring to deliver her coup de grace via cold steel, taking _way_ too much pleasure in gutting the enemy alive with her bayonet.

the squad nearly had the enemy bottled up when shots came out from behind the snadbags and vaious loopholes in the building. Through her scope Kotori saw honoka react to something off to her left yelling at the others to get down.

A large explosion tore open the sandbags surrounding the town hall drawing Kotori's attention to Fumiko and her team emerging from a house. Their defences destroyed or able to be neutralised, with obvious enemy reinforcements and the square in carnage the remaining defenders demoralised by the shock of the ambush, surrendered without a fight.

Kotori wandered around the battlefield afterwards. Miraculously they'd made it through without injury, which was lucky considering they didn't have their Medic among them.

The ground was covered in chipped masonry blood and other debris, bullet holes scarred the walls and buildings, brass casings littered the floor alongside the bodies of the fallen. The blood staining the ground appeared black in the darkness of the night; Kotori winced as she caught sight of one man who had had his stomach ripped open by flying shrapnel from the armoured car. The sights of war were truly sickening, but at least it wasn't their bodies covering the ground.

Manneils was theirs. Yet the gloomy thought lingered in the ashen hiared sniper's mind as she gazed upon the enemy dead.

 _But at what cost_.

* * *

 **A/N: so a second taste of combat (technically third)**

 **a note on locations: most of the smaller places such as villages or certain unimportant bridges are made up including Lightseed and Manneils and don't exist in real life (if they do it's a coincidence and if you live there write to me)** **, this is here to clear up any confusion because obviously I have or will use/mention places like Caen Paris or Arnhem which _do_ exist. **

**A word about OOCness: this chapter and possibly the ones before it will contain behaviour that is undoubtedly OOC the reason for this is...**

 **they've been at war since 1940 some since 1939 so undoubtedly they will have been brutalised and affected in numerous ways (this includes the cinnamon rolls of Hanayo and Rin) this therefore accounts for the most part of the OOCness which reveals itself in combat think of it like the war has produced semi-corrupted forms of their personalities, Rin is really energetic, hence she likes to use her speed in bayonet charges etc. thus developing an affinity for cold steel.**

 **see you all next week**

 **Glossary**

 **PIAT Projector Infantry Anti-Tank: like a bazooka it's what the British and Commonwealth forces used to knock out tanks after the Boys anti-tank rifle (which didn't work) as with the Sten records on combat effectiveness are mixed but it was widely used so it was probably useful**

 **Spandau: what the British forces called the MG-42 or MG-34 the german general purpose machine gun**

 **MP40: German sub-machine gun, the Sten was designed around the same cartridge so british forces could use captured rounds and Mags in it.**


	8. Chapter 6

**A/N: How've you all been? did you like the little oneshot I did for the D-Day anniversary? (shameless plug)**

 **So this week we've got some Fluffy backstory after all the combat the past two weeks, and yes it's UmiMaki again. (sorry fans of other pairings)**

 **Enjoy**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 6

18th June, 1943, Otonokizaka army base near Tunis, Tunisia

"You're all crazy! I've had it! I signed up to fight for my country! I didn't sign up to put up with this!"

Umi drew her hand back from the tent flap, hearing the shouts emanating from inside she decided not to get involved. Their medic had been on edge all month; as far as she was concerned it was only a matter of time before she went the way of all that had come before her and transferred.

 _It takes a certain person to put up with Honoka,_ Umi sighed _just seems like the medical profession is thin on the ground with those people._

The tent flap opened and a blur of black hair and blue eyes barrelled out of the tent.

"Good luck with your new posting Private Kiriyama!" the blue-haired girl shouted after the shrinking dust-cloud that was their now ex-medic.

Umi sighed once more ducking inside the tent, seeing her friend and Sergeant Honoka and the bird like figure of her other friend Kotori standing there slightly shell- shocked.

"So Honoka, don't tell me…we lost another one." Umi rubbed her eyes. Taking off her beret and placing it on one of the chairs in the tent.

"…"

"Hey Honoka" Umi waved her hand in front of the ginger's face.

"Oh!" Honoka jumped "Sorry Umi-chan I didn't notice that you were there." She rubbed the back of her neck.

"Did we lose another one?" Umi pressed her question.

"Yeah, word's starting to spread amongst the Medic's" Kotori leaned against the table in the middle of the tent. "People are refusing to be transferred to us."

"Captain Minami said that any transfers after this one have to be requested by the person in question as well." Umi remembered the conversation they'd had after their last medic had just left.

"At this rate the section might be disbanded." Kotori said, staring at her feet sullenly.

"And we'll be split up…" Umi voiced the concerns of her friends. A solemn silence descended on the tent.

"It's not over yet guys." Honoka jumped up, wrapping her friends into a comforting hug. "Umi-chan, you're the most collected of us, could you try to find us a new medic?"

"Wait a second, Honoka." Umi tried to protest, _damnit dealing with people isn't my strong point_

"Umi-chan please!" the ginger haired girl bowed before her friend clasping her hands.

"Please Umi-chan, I don't want to be split up from you two." Kotori joined Honoka in her display.

The blue haired corporal sighed "fine…I'll try talking to some people around the base. But don't expect much." She cautioned. Sighing once more she grabbed her beret and strolled out into the heat of the North African summer.

* * *

Two hours had passed since then and Umi had had no luck, unattached medics were in short supply for a start and their sergeant's reputation meant those available refused to join her! _It's enough to make a girl go mad._

Amber eyes blinked sleepily as the dusty pathways around the base all blended into one long blur of heat and rejection. Umi collapsed by a jeep frustrated and exhausted, yet another sigh of annoyance escaped her lips as she closed her eyes and tilted her face upwards.

"Corporal Sonoda?" Umi awakened herself, seeing a lithe ginger haired girl and a shorter lilac eyed girl standing over her.

"Private Koizumi, Private Hoshizora, what is it?" Umi yawned,

"Rin heard that you were looking for a new Medic ~nya."

"We thought that we might be able to help, otherwise your section will be disbanded." Hanayo added.

"Rin and Kayo-chin know someone who just arrived from the old days ~nya. She might be willing to join you."

"Thanks you girls, but…" Umi admired the concern of the other girls, yet it was hopeless "…even if she does join us she'll leave like the rest."

"You never know until you try Corporal." Hanayo smiled, "I thought that I couldn't be a Para until Rin gave me the courage."

"Your right Private Koizumi, I suppose that it's worth a try…" Umi sighed, _what have I got to lose_

"Yay! Follow me Corp."

"Wait Rin-chan! That's not the right way…"

Rin ran off at the speed of a bullet before either Hanayo or Umi could stop her.

"Private Hoshizora really is energetic isn't she? She keeps us on our toes." Both girls looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"I should go after her though, our sergeant asked us to run errands while we're out here as well."

"But what about this medic you know?" Umi asked concerned

"You'll find her in the field hospital on base; just ask for Doctor Nishikino, tell her I sent you."

"Ok thanks Koizumi." Umi smiled a little.

"Y-You're welcome. See you Corporal" Hanayo blushed a little before running after her friend.

* * *

Umi wandered past the quartermaster's office, arriving outside a large tent plastered with red crosses Amber eyes stared at the green canvas apprehensively. Umi had never liked these sorts of places; they always reminded her of death, and that was something that she'd had enough of recently, what's more on the battlefield you could block it out, the screams of the dying the pain the blood…in here it was a different story.

She didn't have a clear reason to be there as well, several doctors had already shot her questioning looks as she lingered outside the tent flap, which didn't help as she wasn't very socially adept or comfortable in these situations.

 _Come on Umi you've been through North Africa you are one of the Roten Tefuel the Red Devils…so you can do this…_ Umi slapped her cheeks building up her courage, before stalking into the bustling hub of medical orderlies.

The hospital wasn't at full capacity due to the lack of combat, and safety of the base yet it was still unusually busy. It looked as though they were training the new arrivals so over half of the beds that lined the side of the tent were full with volunteers as well as a few real injuries. Doctors and orderlies buzzed around them like vultures over the dying, the smell of disinfectant hung in the air, and even though most injuries weren't real, most of the doctors looked like they had been on call for a long time. Most of them looked shattered and those that didn't were showing visible signs of tiredness.

Umi took a deep breath and tapped the shoulder of one of the orderlies who looked less busy. "Excuse me I'm looking for a Doctor Nishikino…Private Koizumi sent me…"

The orderly turned around peeling away her face mask and hair net, Umi let out a small gasp. The girl in from of her was a pure vision of beauty. Her tresses were as red as the poppies of Flanders and fell about her head unruly and wild having been cooped up under the burning heat all day. Her eyes were of the deepest violet, tired like the rest of the staff but with a burning passion like the sweltering sun outside that didn't appear anywhere else. The girl was like a cool breeze on a summer's day an oasis in the middle of the desert lush and overflowing with life. She was a reminder that things could always get better.

Umi was so completely enchanted by the ethereal attractiveness so rooted to the spot she didn't hear the orderly ask. "I'm Nishikino. How do you know Hanayo?" her brain was operating on auto-pilot unable or unwilling to process anything other than one thought.

"Beautiful."

Umi was smitten.

A few surprised gasps brought Umi back to the world of the living when she noticed that the doctor had started blushing furiously and visibly shocked by something.

"What did you say?" the orderly demanded as her face turned ruby red.

Umi's smile fell and rapidly turned into an expression of horror as she realised that she had said out her thoughts out loud. The blood rushed to her face making both girls look like they had spent much too long outside in the sun.

 _Why, Why, Why did I just say that? Oh god this is the worst…she's going to hate me after this!_ Embarrassment, shame and panic all swam around Umi's head as she increasingly felt light headed.

"Are you Ok? You don't look so good…" Nishikino said reaching out to the flustered NCO.

Umi hid her head in her hands in shame as she fought against an ever increasing feeling of panic. suddenly the bluenette felt her legs give way as she fell to the floor darkness descending on her. As the orderlies around her yelped, and the beautiful flower that was Nishikino rushed to catch her.

* * *

Umi groaned as she blinked open her eyes, the light headedness of earlier still there in part. She lay on the bed for a moment still enjoying the softness and the airy feeling of the sheets that she had covering her now. Her eyes flicked around the room, registering where she was. The blue haired girl had clicked that she was in a hospital bed that much was obvious. _But what happened exactly?_

Her was uniform folded neatly on a chair beside her the two dusty white chevrons staring at her from out of the khaki fabric the maroon felt of her beret rolled up just behind them. A rustling from the foot of her bed caught Umi's attention.

"Oh you're awake Corporal Sonoda." Umi's breath hitched as she saw the crimson haired doctor from earlier watching over her from the foot of the bed, writing on a clip-board that she clutched close to her chest.

"What…What happened."

"You fainted, I caught you so you didn't suffer any external injury, we're not sure exactly why yet but I think it might be due to mild heat exhaustion. apparently you were running around the base all day in the hottest part of the day. Do you not know how dangerous that is?" the doctor plopped herself on the foot of Umi's bed lightly touching the sheets, her concerned violet orbs met with Umi's tired amber.

"Y-Yes, I'm sorry to have caused trouble for you." Umi bowed in apology worried that she'd angered the girl in front of her by her actions, her head her fringe obscuring her face as she apologised.

Nishikino blushed as Umi apologised, she appeared taken aback slightly as she started to play with the tips of her crimson hair.

"I-It's fine, no trouble at all really. I'm just not used to those kinds of compliments being thrown at me that's all."

Umi froze as she heard the doctor utter those words. The earlier embarrassment rising once more.

"That's not what I was talking about. I meant that you had to take care of me and all. What happened earlier, forget about it, it was really out of character for me. I probably didn't mean it…like you said I've been running around in the heat." Umi laughed nervously

"Oh I see…" the doctor's face fell slightly at the admission. An awkward silence fell upon the pair, the hospital seemed to quieten down adding to the tension, as Nishikino hit her mouth behind the clipboard

"It's just that I thought you were cute as well" Nishikino whispered inaudibly.

Both girls blushed at the awkward silence, the doctor's hair twirling speeding up considerably as silence reigned again. The tension became nearly unbearable for Umi as she stared at the sublime face of the doctor in front of her.

"I-I know, Corporal before the*ahem* incident where you fainted you said you wanted me for something. I believe you said that Hanayo sent you." The redhead shifted uncomfortably as Umi's gaze snapped up.

"O-O-Oh…yeah that's right. I know this might be asking a lot of you Dr Nishikino but could you please consider joining my section as a medic? I was told that as anew arrival you might be able to help, plus you've got your wings so clearly…you're fit for combat" the bluenette fiddled with the sheets nervously as she babbled on averting her gaze from the beauty in front of her.

"I-I'm not entirely sure how to respond to that…" the doctor shuffled up the bed closer to Umi her white coat exposing the khaki beneath. "Is this something Hanayo or Rin needs?"

"No they were just helping me find you that's all. I…no…we really need a medic to transfer in. our current one quit on us and the captain says that the next one has to volunteer otherwise we could be disbanded as a section."

Umi felt the emotions well up inside her as she balled up the sheets in her fists. "I'm afraid I'll be split up from my friends, they say we're going into Sicily soon as well, what if I don't gel at my new posting..?"

The Corporal felt something clasp her hand that stopped her tirade. She looked down at Nishikino's hand that was holding her own.

"I'll do it." The firm reply came.

Umi looked up shocked at the sudden declaration from the cool and collected Nishikino. "Why? I haven't even explained what battalion I'm from or even why the other girl quit on us."

"I want to get away from here anyway, my mother is so overbearing here. I feel like I need to escape or else I'll go insane. So I'll join you as your medic." The redhead suddenly blushed and averted her gaze twirling her hair around her fingers again. "Anyway if it means I can be complimented more by you, I don't mind" she whispered into Umi's ear teasingly.

Blood rushed to Umi's face as she tried meekly to hide her rising blush at the words. Hearing the flowery laughter erupting from her new comrade in arms at her reaction Umi couldn't help but giggle at the odd display of affection from the purple eyed girl. The infectious sound drifted throughout the hospital signifying a new bond that had been formed.

"Thank you Nishikino, you've no Idea how much this means to me. I can't begin to think about how to repay you."

The doctor waved her hands in front of herself frantically, "No, No it's fine, it's fine you don't have to worry about something like that Corporal…"

"Please call me Umi, everyone else does. We're very informal in our section."

"Really..? Are you sure Cor-I mean Umi?"

"No I personally think we should follow regulations" Umi sighed "but my friends are a little free spirited, so it's easier to go by first names. So yes Call me Umi."

"Very well then Umi, I am Dr Nishikino. But considering how we're on first name terms now; please call me Maki." Umi looked up at her new subordinate, only to be blinded by the effortless smile that exposed rows of lily white teeth. It was as though her presence was drawn to her, the sweet scent of primroses drifted on the air from Maki's position all culminated to form one thought in Umi's mind

 _She really is something else._

* * *

One Week later, Maki was standing outside the barrack tent for her section. Her stomach was tying itself in knots, today she would finally meet her section, the people she would fight alongside for a long time. Yet the apprehension wasn't the only reason she was tying herself in knots. The reason poked it's head out of the tent-flap in a flurry of blue hair that would put a bluebell to shame and amber eyes that looked like the brightest marigolds.

"Oh Maki…you're here, come in you need to meet the gang." Umi said Maki nodded in acknowledgment

It had taken a while for the paperwork to go through but Umi had visited her every day in order to prepare her, the description 'free spirited' came up a lot when the NCO was talking about her friends, but as long as she wasn't too standoffish Umi had promised her that it would go smoothly.

Maki blushed at the thought of her senior for a moment, lately she hadn't been able to get the girl out of her head, her breathing was always heavier when she was around, and her heart always beat faster. Her insides tied themselves in knots when Maki merely thought about her. The way her eyes penetrated her soul, boring into her heart forever.

 _Is this love?_

Maki wasn't too sure but all she knew was, that a smile came to her face a lot easier ever since Corporal Umi Sonoda had walked into her life. She shook her head at the thought and took a step through the tent flap.

 _Here we go then._

* * *

 **A/N: I am exceedingly cruel aren't I? making you all wait another two weeks to find out if Umi made it or not?**

 **On a lighter note (for you lot) I am being punished for my cruelty in the form of exams :(**

 **thank you all for your support and to those new people among you if you liked what you read, read and review please.**

 **Next week we have some NozoEli for you all, so stick around.**

 **Glossary:**

 **QuarterMaster: the Soldier (usually senior commisioned officer of Captain or Major for the British) in charge of distributing supplies and stores on the base.**

 **Red Devil: nickname for the Paras given by german units in North Africa, it stuck because it sounds cool.**


	9. Chapter 7

**A/N: Welcome back for another week and as promised this chapter focuses back on the main squad. Hope you all are enjoying it so far.**

 **And I have been asked (Lieutenant Bird) about Mad Jack Churchill (if you don't know who he is look him up, it is great)...Maybe, plus given what I've said it may even turn out to be Mad Jill Churchill ;)**

 **So on with the Show.**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 7

6th June 1944, Village of Manneils Normandy

Eli gazed at the rays of orange that crested over the buildings illuminating the village that was now in British hands, the air was still sticky but somehow just the mere sight of the sunrise made it seem less humid, as though Eli's body knew that morning meant a fresh new day.

"Perfect invasion weather" she muttered to herself, breathing deeply she adjusted the rifle on her shoulder, before turning her back on the sun and heading back into the square that had seen so much combat last night; the scars from the battle last night still very visible _. At least we got the bodies buried. They may be an enemy but they deserved that at the very least._

The square now was busier than the night before, after they had taken it with a little help from Fumiko & co. paratroopers had been filtering in gradually through the night and were still arriving now, most seemed like they had seen combat, but at least Eli and the others wouldn't be taking on every objective on their own.

Eli gazed at the activity in the village, her boots clacking dully against the cobblestone. Some women preparing to go back out there to face whatever their assignment was, while others tried to catch those precious few moments of rest that they could, and there were a few who ran back and forth running errands. Yet despite the activity that only a beehive could rival, Eli knew that there were still too few people here, and that the rest were either lost, fighting or shot down in the night.

As Eli tried to take her thoughts away from their section's missing members she strolled over to the café she and Nozomi had used as a machine gun position the night before. Looking at the five girls collapsed against the wall outside.

"Hey" she waved at the rest of her section, who were gathered around a small stove preparing and eating breakfast. "Have you guys seen Nozomi anywhere?"

"I think she's inside" Honoka chewed a piece of chocolate thoughtfully.

"But none of us are really sure." Nico chipped in

Eli's eyebrow twitched, "How can you not be sure? The café is right behind you!"

"But we're tired Eli-chan" Honoka whined

Eli sighed, rubbing her eyes in exasperation. _If only Umi was here._ The corporal was normally what kept Honoka in line or at least thinking like an NCO should.

"I get that Honoka, but weren't you supposed to sleep last night? That's why Kotori took first watch. I mean look at Hanayo and Rin you could take a page out of their book." Eli waved her hand the sleeping brunette whose head was resting on Rin's lap.

"It's not that simple Eli-chan, the excitement is too much" Honoka pouted

"So what are we supposed to be doing after this Honoka? We need to look for Maki and Umi." Nico asked pouring water into a mess tin hat had been placed over the fire, while ignoring the on-going attempt to straighten out her sergeant.

"uuuuh…I'm not sure." The ginger scratched her head displacing her beret slightly.

"What do you mean not sure?" Eli scolded "You're our NCO Honoka! You're supposed to find out." another sigh escaped her lips.

"But Eli-chan." Honoka pouted again.

"No buts go and see the lieutenant and find out what we're doing. Like are we attacking our original objective, or have plans changed? You know the sort of thing that a Sergeant is _supposed_ to do." Eli put her hands on her hips pointing in the direction the town hall.

"You're so mean Eli-chan! It's just because you're one year older than me."

"We'll let you know when breakfast's ready Sergeant." As Nico called after her Honoka got up and stomped her way across the square.

"Honestly sometimes she forgets how rank works doesn't she?" Kotori gazed in the direction of their sergeant, speaking to no one in particular. Eli noticed some faint emotion in her eyes whenever Kotori looked at Honoka but she could never tell what it is.

"Is breakfast nearly ready?" Eli looked over the now boiling water, only to be disappointed when she saw it to still be empty."

"Patience…" Nico cautioned dumping in a measure of rice "…it'll be a while, go and entertain yourself in the meantime." Nico smirked jerking her thumb at the café behind her

Eli sighed at the obvious insinuation before entering the café all the same.

* * *

The cafe was a simple affair really, chairs were still stacked on the tables and light filtered through the curtains into the dusty air casting beams everywhere, adding to the atmosphere of abandonment that hung over the village.

Eli opened up the bar making her way through to the back room, the faint smell of coffee still permeated the air as though it had been absorbed into the fabric of the cafe. The soft sound of music drifted across the café from a slightly ajar door hinting at Nozomi's location

"Nozomi?" Eli asked, pushing open the door quietly. No response. _She probably can't hear me._ A smile tugged at the corner of her lips at the thought of surprising the mysterious girl.

Her smile fell when she saw that the room really was empty except for a few chairs and a table with a gramophone playing a record in the middle. Light flowed in through a dirty window that looked out onto a small garden giving a slight amount of colour to the peeling yellow wallpaper.

"Guess she's not here…" Eli sighed propping her rifle up against the wall, before tracing her fingers lightly along the table edge; the lilt of jazz reverberating off of the walls, lulling her into a slightly lethargic state.

Two hands suddenly gripped her breasts causing her to yelp and jump forward.

"My Eli-chi, you've grown again haven't you?" Nozomi's green orbs danced with mischief just over her shoulder.

"S-Shut up Nozomi! There are more normal ways to greet a person."

"Like what?"

"Hello might be a start." Eli retorted, her arm protecting her chest from further advances.

"That's no fun though…" Nozomi sulked, her lips pouting like they always did when she faked being upset.

Eli smiled at the act; despite all her faults and quirks she loved Nozomi just the same. She collapsed into a chair before letting out a contented sigh, as the weight was taken off of her feet.

"Hey Eli-chi…" Nozomi slinked around the room grabbing a chair lightly before dragging it next to the blonde with a slight scrape.

"What?" Eli mumbled her acknowledgement, the fatigue of the past day, and the sight of Nozomi's seductive aura taking hold of her, increasing her lethargy.

"Doesn't this music take you back?"

"What do you mean?"

Nozomi plumped herself on the chair before resting her head on Eli's chest, lightly clutching her hand. The hard metal of her helmet contrasted with the silky smoothness of her hair and the softness of her skin. Nozomi was a very soft person anyway, in both personality and body, the warmth of her body reminding her of the cat she had at home. It was one of the things that Eli loved about her, the fact that no matter how hard the world appeared Nozomi was there to comfort her, to let the blonde lose herself in her. Eli was always grateful to have the purple haired fool in her life.

"I mean listen to the music."

Eli listened to the smooth jazz, before giving a little gasp.

"It's our song…Monte Carlo" Nozomi nodded showing that she'd got it right.

"We thought we were just ships passing in the night, turns out you're a bit harder to lose than that." Eli rolled her eyes , and Nozomi giggled lightly.

"Do you remember much about Monte Carlo? It's been seven years now." The blonde asked.

"A little. The sun, the sea, the bars. But I think you are the only thing that I'll ever care about from that summer."

Eli smiled at the memory of the family holiday she'd been on when she was 17, the stifling boredom of the endless parade of parties, exiled Russian aristocrats and boring conversation; led her to seek out a more exciting time in the seedy underbelly of the town, she loved her life and family but sometimes it just became too tedious to bear. She was exploring the bars near the port that sailors frequented when she had seen a flash of purple hair and a glint of green eyes as Nozomi had entered the bar, through the dense cigarette smoke and summer heat she was a vision. They had spent the entire summer together while Nozomi spent her pay on 'fun', eventually after a particularly romantic evening Eli and Nozomi had shared a kiss on top one of the cliffs overlooking the city in the glorious sunset. Eli was heartbroken when she discovered that Nozomi's ship had left port the next day, and that her parents wanted to return to London. But fate had reunited them eventually.

"I don't think I ever felt that way about any other person, before or since. Don't you wish you could go back and re-live it sometimes, before all this madness happened?" Eli murmured close to burying her face in the mess of magenta hair on her chest. Nozomi's lips brushed against her knuckles causing Eli's breath to hitch.

"No not really…" Nozomi's sudden admission caught Eli off guard.

"Why not?! Didn't you have fun that summer?" Eli practically screeched.

"You know my ship was gun running for the Republicans that summer right? I've seen a lot, but Spain was all kinds of messed up…not something I'd like to see again…you were all that kept me sane that summer." Nozomi mumbled into her lover's hand.

"You what?" Eli's ice blue eyes temporarily widened in shock at the revelation, a slight giggle escaped her lips. "You really are a mysterious piece of work Nozomi."

"You've got that right; even I don't know half the stuff about myself that I should." Nozomi stared forlornly at the gramophone.

"Hang on a second…" Eli fumbled slipping her hand into Nozomi's breast pocket.

"My Eli-chi…so bold…"

"It's not like that." Eli blushed at the insinuation; finally she got a hold of one of the tarot cards that Nozomi always kept there. "Gotcha…well Nozomi what does this one mean?"

Nozomi looked at the card, she perked up a little "it means that things that are lost will be found."

"Does that mean..?" Eli dared not to say what they were thinking lest she jinx it.

"It might do…the future works in strange ways."

"Hey there you two are!" Nico poked her head around the doorway scowling at the two girls sat down who had now jumped out of their skin.

"Nico-chi don't do that you scared us."

"Well sorry for interrupting you two lovebirds but breakfast is ready, and Hanayo is eating all the rice, so if you'd like to eat…" the Nico's gestured out of the doorway, her black hair bobbing as she did so.

Eli blushed at the accusation and stammered out a response"N-Nico don't say things like that…people will misunderstand."

"Come on Eli-chi we need to eat." Nozomi stood up pulling Eli gently by her hand stalking her way towards the door, to join the others.

* * *

"So, to answer the question of what our operations are today. I will be leading the attack on the Dives Bridge."

The section sat in stunned silence at their Sergeant's announcement. Eli raised her hand tentatively

"Why you? I mean…won't the bridge be too heavily defended even for us?" the assembled section nodded their heads in agreement.

"Eli's right," Nico declared "this is the sort of thing you entrust to a platoon with an officer at the very least, plus none of us have any experience with explosives." More murmurs of agreement flowed throughout the group.

"That's what I said to them," Honoka interjected "but the problem is apart from Fumiko-chan the only other officer here is Captain Minami and a few of her staff."

"Rin wants to know what happened to the rest of them nya~?" the orange haired girl asked her hand waving in the air crazily.

"They haven't arrived yet…some have been wounded and some just didn't make it." A silence descended on the section while Honoka let her words sink in.

"In other words…there is only one officer we can have in combat as an entire battalion…" Hanayo mumbled through mouthfuls of her rice which she had been consuming at a superhuman rate.

"That seems to be about the size of it." Nico agreed. No one looked pleased at the idea of destroying a bridge just the seven of them.

"Come on guys!" Honoka jumped up her fist raised in a rallying call, "We went through Sicily without any officers, this'll be a cake walk in comparison to that. We're Muse Section remember. We don't need officers, you've got me."

"Somehow that doesn't sound like a comfort." Hanayo mumbled eliciting a tense laugh from the assembled girls.

Honoka's eyebrow twitched at the slight insult. Gathering her wits together, she continued. "We're not doing this alone anyway, if you're worried about troop strength…Fumiko-chan said that she'd lend us her section while she gets things organised for their other objective. Also we're going to get a detachment of at least five royal engineers plus any volunteers we can scrounge up." As Honoka counted off the people joining them the section realised the seven of them weren't going to be taking on a heavily defended position alone, the heavy silence that had dominated before evaporated.

Eli sighed with relief at the realisation "Honoka…next time lead with that." Her supposedly calm tone accompanied by a fiery expression that would intimidate the hardest of men.

"S-Sorry guys…" The subtle reprimand inducing a look of fear in the NCO, who bowed asking for forgiveness.

"So when do we move out?" Nozomi asked

"Hmmm…" Honoka paused thinking she thought, "oh I forgot to say, in order to get this done on schedule we need to leave in twenty minutes…"

All six girls looked up from their breakfasts, half stunned at the announcement, before wolfing down what remained of their breakfasts. There wasn't even time to complain.

 _Damnit Honoka_ Eli chuckled ironically at the ad-hoc way they all operated.

* * *

Eli trudged across the edge of the field, the chirp of birds being the only sound that she could hear; the group was straggling along the edge of the green expanse in a single file line. Regardless of the difficulty this imposed on conversation after half an hour of the same routine the girls had started chatting and joking to pass the time.

Along with a few extra volunteers, Hideko and Mika had joined them once more, Jenkins having been left behind due to a rather underhanded trick on their part. The engineers were less talkative and mostly kept to themselves rarely talking and they had an annoying habit of occasionally stopping to "check the charges" they had brought along to do the task in hand.

Eli kept her eye out for Germans while making small talk with Nozomi over her shoulder, Eli really hated marching in single file…it somehow felt lonely, plus the constant turning around to see and talk to Nozomi made her neck ache.

The signal for them to all halt was passed down the line, stopping the murmur of conversation, each girl got down on one knee. They all looked around nervously at the surrounding hedges and the open ground to their right for signs of enemy activity. Honoka signalled for them to gather around her.

The section closed in quickly deploying around so that they could see Honoka, but keeping their weapons trained on their surroundings.

Honoka explained the situation using a map that was spread out on Nico's knee.

"We're about ten minutes' walk from our target." She pointed to the road that crossed the snaking blue line on the map. "We need to keep it quiet from here on out." The ginger haired girl now speaking in hushed tones

A grudging low "Understood" was heard from the section.

"We can assume that the Germans are prepared now so we need to be careful" Nico noted.

"Honoka nodded her head, "We'll split into three for the attack; Eli you take Nozomi , Kotori and three others make your way into this orchard here." Honoka traced a route with her finger stopping at a rectangular green splodge that was near the bridge. "You will provide cover fire suppressing the enemy defences."

But Honoka…" Kotori began her protest.

"No buts Kotori-chan you need to keep your distance remember…Honestly sometimes it's like you actively try to stay next to me" Honoka's quiet voice made it clear that this wasn't negotiable.

Eli inwardly cringed at Honoka's cluelessness to Kotori's reasons. While Honoka continued to outlay their plan of attack.

"I'll take Nico Hanayo, Rin and the PIAT we'll work our way around to the riverbank on the left side." Honoka looked to see nods of agreement from the named people "After that you move up and we storm the opposite bank, once we have the bridge secure the engineers can do their thing as the third team."

"I guess Rin acts as a runner keeping us connected as usual?" Eli asked, earning a nod from Honoka in response.

"We split up now." Honoka said with finality, folding up the map. "Muses, Move out."

The girls got to their feet and quickly assembled into their teams. The earlier conversation gone, everyone now tried to keep their head down knowing that it was likely that the enemy was in the area.

The time passed in an instant and soon the orchard was in sight, a smattering of trees hidden behind a low stone wall that bordered the entire orchard. Eli scanned it for any visible German defences, while unlikely it was possible that the enemy might've deployed out this far to keep an eye on approaches to the bridge. Seeing none she gave the signal to move out in a wide sweeping arc across the meadow that lay before them. Her team stood up cautiously, moving as quietly as possible; at a brisk walk that made it clear they wanted to get out of the open.

The crack of a rifle shattered the peace that had existed before. The head of one of the girls who had volunteered snapped back with a sickening crunch when the bullet hit her head, passing through like a bolt of lightning causing blood and brown hair to explode out the back.

"Sniper!" Eli yelled to her team as they all hit the deck. Her cry drowned out by the chatter of machine gun fire that echoed across the peaceful meadow.

"Contact Front!" the shout went up, while everyone hit the deck. Eli threw herself forward behind a small rise in the meadow, the sudden impact against the ground jarring Eli's bones slightly.

The bullets kicked up dirt and tore the flowers and grass that had been drifting softly in the breeze. As rounds flew overhead, they filled the air with the fast zip like sounds, which sounded as though a hive of bees had been disturbed. Eli looked up to see at least two persistent muzzle flashes coming from the Orchard wall.

"Shit!" Eli swore, cursing herself for not noticing the troops hidden behind the wall, who were now spraying bullets across the entire field.

Her team pinned down Eli looked around frantically to find Nozomi. The Bren gunner was lying like Eli was, trying to take cover behind a small hillock gunshots tore up the earth surrounding her keeping her head down.

The Sniper's rifle cracked once more, sending up a clod of dirt that was much too close to Eli's head for her comfort. Ducking back down to avoid the same fate that had befallen the unfortunate volunteer she could do nothing but listen. Over the sound of battle she could hear more distant gunfire making it clear that she wasn't the only one in trouble.

 _Well this is a fine way to destroy a bridge._ Eli thought bitterly.

* * *

 **A/N: So yeah not going to plan is it. Next week, some special guests A-rise, I mean arrive, slip of the tongue there.**

 **One other thing I have a poll on my Profile and it would mean a lot to me if as many of you answer it as possible, since I need to know what's popular amongst you lot.**

 **Glossary:**

 **Mess Tin: metal container used by the army for cooking and eating**


	10. Chapter 8

**A/N: Ok so I've been mean for long enough finally this chapter you guys get the resolution you've been waiting for.**

 **So here it is about 5,856 words of (mostly) UmiMaki goodness with some new character introductions near the end.**

 **Enjoy.**

 **Warning parts of this get oddly sexual**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 8

6th June 1944 near Manneils Normandy

The sunlight streamed through the open windows, falling on Maki's sleeping face, gently stirring her from her slumber. Blearily the redhead blinked open her eyes. She groaned, her gaze falling on the door that had been kicked in on its hinges still open, swinging in the breeze. It brought back memories of the night before.

 _6 Hours earlier._

The pistol cracked in the night air, the sound echoing. Maki watched the bullet hit Umi in the stomach becoming aware of a screaming noise, but she wasn't sure where it was coming from, there was nobody else around.

Her Sten barked finishing off the officer lying on the ground, his luger hitting the ground with a dull thud. Umi stared at Maki blankly; blood blossoming through the dark fabric of her smock.

"M-Maki?" the blue haired girl touched the wound on her front, looking at her bloodied hand her face a quizzical picture. A look of realisation flashed across her eyes as her knees gave out, she slumped to the ground.

Her lover scrambled across the bloodstained grass, desperately trying to reach the prone form of Umi, Maki knelt down beside her. Purple eyes gazed at the corporal, fear etched nearly permanently into them.

As the horror in the redhead's eyes intensified the initial hit of adrenaline wore off and Umi started breathing rapidly as the full spectrum of pain hit her. Cries of agony rocked her body, tearing the medic's emotions apart watching the person she cared about most in the world writhing on the ground.

"Maki! Maki!" The words came out of her mouth tortured, broken.

The sudden cries of her name snapped Maki back into her senses. Her hands fumbled in the medical kit slung across her body, searching for the tools she needed to help. The medic ripped open Umi's clothes exposing the wound while she tore open a packet of coagulant with her teeth.

Applying pressure to stem the flow of blood; Maki briefly studied the gaping hole torn in Umi glistening with blood, pulsing with almost a life-like quality with each guttering breath. She tipped the white powder into the wound stemming the bleeding.

"It's going to be fine, Ok Umi? Hang in there" Umi gritted her teeth and nodded, sweat pouring down her face.

Maki caressed her cheek softly with one hand, grabbing a series of bandages with the other. Ripping open the containers she wrapped them around Umi's waist as fast as she could, her hands slick with the blood of her patient staining the soft white cotton gauze a gory red.

"Nearly there, keep pressure on it, can you do that for me Umi?" the redhead requested, pressing both of her lover's hands on the wound receiving a swift nod in reply.

"We've got to go, that was only a temporary fix, and you'll need stiches…" The medic looked around anxiously, grabbing Umi's gun that lay discarded on the ground. "…I saw a farmhouse a couple hundred metres back. We'll hole up there while I patch you up properly. Ok?" she noted the blood already seeping through Umi's bandage her eyes widening with anxiety.

Maki put Umi's arm around her shoulder, they both limped their way across the field. Supporting the injured corporal Maki made painfully slow progress

The farmhouse was locked, but it looked like it had been abandoned for some time. Umi leaned against a wall for support, her breathing still heavy due to the shock of the pain. Maki checked the possible entrances to see if she could work her way in with the injured Corporal before giving up and kicking down the door.

She laid Umi on the large table in the kitchen after sweeping its contents to the floor. Lighting the few candles and a lantern she could find to produce a source of light Maki got her patient to lie down on the hard, cold wood of the table. She wildly slung her first aid kit onto the table and propped it open on the table near Umi's head, alongside a bowl of warm water and a towel.

Maki saw her patient's torso causing a hitch in her breath. The maroon stain on the bandages had grown from the few streaks left by her fingers, indicating that she had failed to stop the blood loss, the redhead's finger tips lightly grazed the skin of the blue haired woman hovering over the wound as though under a spell, being in such close contact to Umi. Maki shook her head, fighting the blush rising to her cheeks, grabbing a pair of scissors from her bag.

The cries of pain made it clear that she urgently needed some form of pain relief. Fumbling in her bag for the vital painkiller Maki's blood ran cold, her hands found only broken glass and soggy fabric where there should've been doses of morphine.

"Shit!" The medic slammed her hand on the table, the sudden noise and exclamation causing her patient to look weakly in her direction.

Maki cast her mind back a couple hours when she had cut loose her kit-bag in the forest, she hadn't bothered to check whether the fall had damaged her medical supplies now she had no immediate painkiller to comfort Umi.

 _Fuck how could I be so stupid?!_ The frantic girl allowed herself only a brief moment of self-hatred before she quickly looked around the kitchen for an alternative.

Hands shaking with the adrenaline coursing through her, Maki dashed around the kitchen tearing open cupboards searching for the only possible alternative chaotically; just emptying their contents onto the ground.

"Where is it? Come on! There has to be some!" the medic muttered desperately under her breath, the moans of the girl on the table providing a constant reminder to her that she wasn't searching fast enough. Finally she threw open one cupboard to find her goal. A bottle of brandy stood half full right at the back behind a set of glass tumblers glinting in the candle light.

"Gotcha!" Maki wrenched the bottle and one of the glasses out of dark cabinet. She opened the bottle pouring the majority of the ochre coloured liquid into the glass.

Holding the pungent liquor to her patient's lips she gently urged the face contorted in pain to drink. Cupping the back of Umi's head Maki raised the glass to her lips; she watched Umi gulped down the brownish liquid, ebbing and flowing in the glass, the injured girl stopping occasionally to shudder at the taste of alcohol that was entering her system.

Maki waited a few minutes for the brandy to take effect keeping pressure on Umi's wound. Thankfully Umi was a lightweight, and she hadn't eaten in hours so Maki didn't have to wait long before her cries of pain subsided and the corporal was slurring her words and muttering barely coherent sentences.

"Y-Y-You're so pretty, you know that?" Umi's glazed eyes rolled around the room; the rest of her sentence incoherent. Her hand limply caressed the redhead's face, a small hiccup escaping her mouth.

It was at this point, while blushing furiously, that Maki decided that Umi was drunk enough.

The medic checked Umi's eyes once more to see if the Alcohol was having the desired effect. Satisfied she cut away the bandage peeling it off of the wound revealing a mess of dried and congealed blood, with fresh liquid trickling out of the wound all the time.

Maki looked at the injury, a dark realisation dawning on. _There is no exit wound. Which means the bullet is still inside her. If it stays in there, then is a higher chance of infection._

"Umi…I'm going to try and remove the bullet, and then I'll have to stich you up. It _will_ hurt, even with the alcohol and it will get worse as it wears off."

The sudden seriousness in the Maki's face appeared to bring a moment of sobriety to the drunken mess of a patient. "I trust you Maki…make it quick, please."

The medic nodded before passing Umi a wooden spoon to bite on. Clutching the forceps she took from her kit in her teeth, she had one last look into the wound. From the looks of things Umi had been lucky. There was no visible damage to any vital organs, and the lack of severe blood loss implied that no major arteries or veins had been punctured, yet she couldn't see the bullet.

Cursing she explored the wound with her fingers; eliciting a cry from Umi, her body jerking upwards at the sudden entrance into her. Maki slowly probed inside Umi using her body weight to keep her pinned down, checking for any damage she might've missed.

 _Where are you?_ Maki thought frantically, another hiss of pain escaping her patient's lips. The medic searched her face wearing a mask of pure concentration. _Where are you?_

She felt a metallic bump lodged in the slippery warmth of Umi's body, a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Using her fingers to keep open the opening Maki took her forceps and plunged them into the bluenette clamping them around the lump of metal inside of her.

Umi clenched her hands into fists, sweat drenching her body; the medic slowly, gently removed the bullet, trying to avoid rupturing any blood vessels along the way. The next few seconds were tense Maki easing the forceps free of the injury. The small piece of bloodstained lead shined dully in the candlelight, before Maki deposited it with a small 'clink' on the side of the table.

The room was silent fleetingly, except for the deep breaths of Umi who lay there panting from the exertion, her hair plastered to her face by sweat.

Maki sewed up the hole quickly to avoid further blood-loss threading the needle in and out of Umi's flesh. Maki closed up her gunshot wound bit by bit after what she had just endured Umi barely even registered the prick of the needle into her skin, the needle sometimes slipped in Maki's hands due to the gore coating them.

After washing and redressing the wound the redhead collapsed back exhausted, her hands and covered in blood, admiring her work. Her patient had by now fallen asleep probably from the combined effects of the alcohol and blood loss.

"Hey Umi" Maki whispered to her slumbering face "I'll take a look around this place, you just try to rest" she wiped away some of the sweat plastering her friend's cheeks caressing the bluenette's forehead at the same time. The redhead smiled slightly her gaze softening from the petrified worry it had held, she tucked a stray hair behind her lover's ear, the smile sticking on her face with her even as she went to wash her hands and wandered out of the kitchen.

Maki discovered that there wasn't much else to the farm house except a living room and a single bedroom upstairs. The majority of it covered in dust, the kitchen appeared to be the only well used room in the house, with clean surfaces and what used to be well stocked cupboards _. At least until I emptied most of it onto the floor_ , Maki thought guiltily.

Maki surveyed the dark living room moonlight streaming in through the open windows and what was left of the door, sighing. The majority of the furniture was covered in white sheets acting as dust covers, and for the most part it appeared to be nothing more than a few chairs and a bookcase or two. However also in the living room was a shape that didn't fit with the others, if Maki was right it would be the previous occupants' most prized possession. A shape that looked similar to a grand piano sat there concealed under a sheet.

Maki pulled off the dust cover with a flourish revealing a shiny sleek form underneath the gentle rustle of fabric breaking the silence. The redhead held her breath.

 _I was right._

She hadn't been able to play the piano in over three years, and this might be her last opportunity for the remainder of the war. She didn't question how it had got there; all she knew was that she had to play it.

Despite it being scratched and scuffed all over the redhead could feel that the piano had been loved by its previous inhabitants. Maki slowly opened the lid, an act that would enable the sound to travel faster longer freeing it from its wooden prison.

She could barely keep a grin off of her face, her hands lifting the keyboard cover savouring every creek and sound that she made. Her fingers brushed against the smooth ivory of the keys bringing back memories of those years before the war.

She hummed slightly, pressing on one of the keys savouring the sound as it resonated through the room: reverberating through her soul, reminding her of her love of music. Few would understand her love of playing not just, but of bringing to life the composers emotions.

The redhead felt like she was 17 again she inhaled deeply the dust tickling her nose slightly. She placed both hands on the keyboard, lavender eyes danced with delight.

She paused slightly checking over her shoulder nervously like a naughty child worried that she might get caught. Maki threw herself into the music. Her hands operating by muscle memory losing herself in the melodies of the strings, she ran through countless pieces by every composer she could remember: Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, when she ran out she started playing on her own, her voice joining in in an angelic harmony the echoed through the dark night.

For once Maki was no longer a medic, she was no longer a Paratrooper, a soldier who had seen and experienced the horrors of war. She was simply a girl, a woman with a passion for music, whose life knew no hardship or pain. She played pouring her feelings into the instrument, all the pain she had witnessed, all the hardship, all the awful things that humanity was capable of, all of the scars upon her heart erupted in an outburst of melodic chords all the frustration she felt at her feelings for the girl in the next room. Such was the privilege of musicians to lose themselves in this magical world.

Yet her hands grew tired, and her voice hoarse, Maki slowed down gradually. The music finally stopping after a final few chords, the redhead sighed cautching her breath, wallowing in the aftermath of her musical outburst, the outpouring of her pent-up emotions and frustration.

The floorboards behind her gave a small 'creak', causing Maki to jump at the noise indicating a person behind her.

"Beautiful…absolutely beautiful" Maki span around glaring at her secret observer's voice.

"Oh…it's you Umi." The blue haired girl was standing behind Maki, dishevelled, her shirt still half open showing the fresh bandages on her stomach and more. Eyes clouded with a mix of some unknown emotion and the effects of the alcohol still coursing through her system. Head tilted slightly to one side.

"I didn't know you played so exquisitely…I heard that you played but I had no idea you were this talented." Her voiced slightly slurred, Umi crossed the room closing the distance between her and Maki, like it was the most natural thing in the world wrapping her arms around the medic's neck.

"Oh…i-it's nothing really" Maki blushed at the closeness of a half-naked Umi, twirling her hair around her finger, she gulped realising that Umi was still _very_ drunk. "I-I mean there are loads of people who play better than me" she murmured averting the piercing gaze of the intoxicated Umi.

"Perhaps…" Umi caressed Maki's face tilting it upwards with a finger under her chin so it faced her own. "…but you're the best one I'll ever know."

Maki's heart raced as she stared into the eyes that she had fallen for.

 _She has to be drunk. She'd never be this cool otherwise._

Maki's mind was agitated. Her breath mingling with that of her lover due to her closeness of Umi's lips, almost brushing against her own, adding to her apprehension. The sheen on the midnight blue hair from the moonlight, her lips still pale from her blood loss, gifting Umi resemblance to a creature of the night oozing charm, and seduction; the atmosphere was electric, all combining with her new found courage and almost predatory gaze to give Umi an aura of effortless class.

The tension between the two increased until Maki felt Umi's lips crash against hers, the softness becoming intoxicating. Amethyst orbs widened in shock at the audacity of move, but she embraced the kiss all the same, accepting the full flavour of her partner brushing her hand against Umi's cheek, moving up to bury her hand in Umi's hair

 _Like a lake given form_.

Umi broke away, causing Maki to whimper needily. It ended with both exhaling unsteadily.

Maki moved away, beginning to register what she had just done, she turned crimson quickly, opening her mouth to protest.

But Umi captured her lips briefly for a few seconds rendering her unable to speak as Umi began trailing kisses along the redhead's cheek and jawline, each soft embrace from her lips making Maki burn and shiver simultaneously. Fear and confusion gripped Maki. _What's going on? Umi isn't normally like this. What is she doing?_

"U-Umi…wha-what are you doing?" Maki squeaked. The blue haired girl responded with a mischievous smile flashed at her.

"Something I should've done a long time ago." The normally shy girl turned seductress whispered, throatily, into the redhead's ear.

Umi smiled once more before placing more kisses on Maki's collarbone, while unzipping her smock and undoing the buttons on her shirt.

Maki moaned slightly, before catching herself, she felt the same fear that she always felt around Umi, that she would let go of the façade she put up, the conscious side of her mind thinking of ways to try and stop.

Yet as much as Maki wanted to try and stop Umi, another side of her, a primal animal side begged her to reciprocate, to expose herself to Umi body and soul.

"Umi…we should stop…I mean you're injured, you might tear the stitching."

"I don't care." The stark response was accompanied by a sharp kiss on her shoulder. Amber eyes pierced the night with a fiery resolve that was very un-Umi –like. "I want you Maki…I _need_ you." She punctuated the last few husky words with an open-mouthed kiss placed on the redhead's neck; the hot breath and soft lips nipping at her skin teasing out another deeper moan from her lips. It was like Maki's entire body was extra sensitive to her touch.

The medic's inhibitions, the ones that had kept her from reciprocating fully were wavering under Umi's assault. The older girl's words articulating Maki's inner thoughts making her want to throw herself at her lover, but she still tried to keep a level head.

"N-No, you _need_ rest. D-Doctor's Orders!" Maki tried to sound firm but it came out simply sounding weak, merely emphasising the fact that Umi was so very close to having complete control over the redhead's entire being.

Maki felt Umi smile against her skin, causing her to shiver with an animalistic pleasure. "Well then. We'll just have to make the doctor change her mind. Won't we?" The controlling force Umi exuded was unstoppable as she peeled away the last of the clothing separating her from her from the redhead in front of her.

The last of Maki's inhibitions melted away, she was paralysed by Umi; by her touch, by her gaze, by her warmth, by her very existence itself. All Maki could do was hold on tightly, clutching at her Midnight blue hair as Umi claimed her very existence.

0500hrs 6th June 1944

Maki blushed furiously as she remembered all of what happened last night. She looked down to see a woollen blanket semi-covering her naked form, memories of the night before running through her mind.

 _Did that really happen?_

Maki pushed herself up onto her elbows, looking at the state of the farmhouse, the discarded articles of clothing and the aches in her muscles showing how 'hectic' things had gotten last night. It wasn't as though it was their first time together or anything, but last time they had both been on leave in London and they both had gotten very drunk in their hotel. Maki could barely remember anything about the night, only a few minor details had slipped through the cracks: the memory of Umi's voice huskily calling her name, her body heat, the feeling of her soft silky skin. Using those memories she had pieced together what had happened from circumstance. Even if they weren't able to remember it, it had made things awkward between the two of them as each girl fought to maintain their façade in front of the other.

But now even if Umi might not Maki remembered every detail, every feeling, every touch every sound sight and smell. It so embarrassing to think about she felt like she might die from shame. But at the same time she liked it, replaying the night's events in her head, a small smile on her face, had a certain forbidden pleasure to it.

The slumbering figure of Umi stirred beside her. Maki jumped, seeing the person whose name had been on her lips so much last night. If she could see Maki now her face would be the shade of her now crumpled beret for a long time she just knew it.

Slapping her face bringing herself back to reality, Maki quickly found her clothing and quickly put it on, although her beret was still missing. Umi was still slumbering on the floor by the piano when Maki got back, despite everything the redhead couldn't help but gaze at her partner's sleeping face. _Regardless of what she's like when she's awake, she's pretty cute when she sleeps, huh?... Not that I should care about that sort of thing._ Maki almost laughed at her pathetic attempt to deny her own feelings

"Umi, time to get up sleepy head." Maki gently shook Umi's shoulder trying to rouse the older girl from her sleep.

The amber orbs blearily opened the whites of her eyes criss-crossed with blood vessels, scanning the room tiredly as Umi processed her surroundings. As the after effects of the alcohol hit her, Umi's hand pressed against her forehead, a gasp of pain passing her lips, as her hand touched her stomach as well. The pallor of her skin paler than usual.

"Ugh, Maki? What happened last night?" Umi's voice was hoarse. Maki placed her hand on her shoulder rubbing it slightly like she did whenever Umi was hungover, which to be brutally honest wasn't often.

The blush that had faded from Maki's face returned with the reminder of last night. "N-Nothing, I mean what do you remember?" keeping her voice low so as to not aggravate the Corporal's hangover.

"I remember the attack, and then I was shot?" Umi looked to Maki for confirmation. The redhead nodded. "We came to the farmhouse" Umi looked away shyly gathering up the blanket pooled around her. "Then you got me drunk, as a painkiller. After that though it's a little hazy, I can remember panting and someone saying my name a lot though. Were we running away from someone?"

Maki spluttered at the question. "N-No!" the volume of her voice making Umi wince and clutch her forehead again.

The medic passed the corporal her shirt which she grabbed along with a few other items. "Here you should get changed." Maki said desperately trying to change the subject motioning for Umi to put her clothes on.

If Umi was unconvinced by her answer but she didn't say it but the penetrating stare and the narrowing of eyebrows she got implied that that was the case, instead the blue haired girl shooed her out of the room.

Turning her back on the naked girl sat on the living room floor, Maki wandered to the small hallway. Her emotions were a mess, relief, sadness, embarrassment all mingled fighting for supremacy in her brain. The redhead put her hands to her head and exhaled slowly before banging her head against the wall lightly arms limp by her sides next to the slung sub-machine gun she was wearing. She felt like screaming.

Maki was stirred out of her reverie by the distinct metallic click of a bolt-action being worked behind her.

"Haut les mains!" the female voice spat out the last word with venom.

Maki slowly raised her hands placing them behind her head interlocking her fingers so as not to provoke the new intruders. She heard different tones of whispering behind her. _More than one person huh? They might be resistance…or if we're unlucky Milice_

"Alors, vous pensez que vous pouvez forcer l'entrée à notre maison?" the question was accompanied by a rough shove to Maki's shoulder forcing her to the ground facing the wall.

"We didn't mean to break in-" Maki was cut off by a muffled scream emanating from the kitchen that was most certainly not Umi. Heavy footsteps joined by the creaking of floorboards reverberated throughout the house, stopping a few metres behind Maki. Another set echoed in the lounge, accompanied by groans from the still hungover bluenette.

The medic's gaze became fogged with anger that they might have hurt Umi her mind narrowed in on ensuring her lover's safety. Her mind raced trying to think of all the possible situations, but she kept thinking only that she should try to enable Umi to escape, ignoring the staccato fire of conversation that was hissing about behind her. These people could be dangerous, all she could do as much as it angered her was cooperate until Umi could escape, and after that she didn't care.

"Stop speaking so loud you bastards! And let us go!" Umi's words cut across their captors conversation

"Quoi..? Anglais..? Mais Tusbasa!... Compris." Maki heard the light rattle of a rifle being put down, it sounded like her guard had gotten orders from someone else.

"I'm sorry about all this, you can get up now" Maki felt herself pulled up by a gentle tug. She turned around to see three very different girls standing there. Umi struggled to her feet clutching her stomach and head as she did so. The one who had helped her up was a short-ish girl who wore a black beret over her brown hair, her large forehead emphasising her green eyes and porcelain skin. She was attractive, Maki thought; her image was completed by a white woollen sweatshirt and a simple black skirt, she could've been any farm worker in Europe. Yet the old Sten gun slung across shoulder and an armband with the Cross of Lorraine emblazoned on it marked her out as a member of the French resistance.

"I'm Kira Tsubasa, leader of A-RISE." the one who had helped her up also appeared to be the one in charge. Maki analysed the groups while moving defensively in front of a fully dressed Umi. "This here is Toudou Erena…" Tsubasa continued

Tsubasa gestured at a girl with purple hair falling around her shoulders like a veil. Verdant eyes which were sulking glumly as the group walked into the living room. Erena's petite nose wrinkled at the musky scent that hung in the air as she leaned against one of the chairs that dotted the room, chucking the rifle she was holding onto the dusty sheet. She was similarly dressed to Tsubasa in French peasant clothing with a simple blue shirt and canvas trousers that were speckled with mud.

"…and this is Yuuki Anju" Tsubasa waved her hand at the last of her companions as she finished her sentence

An orange haired girl who was leaning on a light machine gun waved nonchalantly, boredom visible in her mauve eyes. Unlike the other two she was dressed more like she belonged on the Champs Èlysées than the fields of Normandy with a fashionable blazer and bonnet that Maki usually only saw in fashion magazines coupled with boots and a bandolier, that somehow just worked, despite the bizarreness.

Maki cast her eye over Erena's weapon. _That's a MAS 36…so they must be ex-military then. What's more, she must be the one who first 'introduced' herself to me._

A groan drew Maki's attention away from the three resistance fighters. She spun around to see Umi wobbling dangerously, her eyes slightly more bloodshot than before.

"M-Maki?"

"Umi? Are you Ok?" Maki steadied her partner from collapsing holding her hand and gently sitting her down.

"Yes, No. I really don't feel well; please don't break the morphine again…" Umi sank down against the wall curling up into a ball with her forehead resting on her knees

"Is she hungover?" Tsubasa asked politely, obviously wanting to clear the air after having pointed guns at them earlier.

"Yeah, I gave her brandy last night as a painkiller while I sewed up her wound…sorry about the state of your kitchen." Maki meekly apologised.

"Anju can you go and make a glass of _La Bombard_ for our guest please." The Ginger slung up her Machine Gun and muttered something in French about 'rude guests' before she stalked her way into the kitchen

The girls sat in silence as sounds of preparation of whatever a _La Bombard_ was made from echoed out of the ruined room. Some were just plain bizarre, like Maki could swear that she heard a sheep bleating. Soon however the girl called Anju came out of the kitchen with a glass full of a foul smelling grey liquid which she handed to Umi.

Umi cocked her head confused, as her vision came into focus she let out a small scream as she inhaled the smell, a look of disgust on her face. The Resistance fighters were fidgeting awkwardly as Tsubasa motioned for her to drink it. Umi put the glass to her lips, gulping down the liquid that shared the same colour as a three day old corpse, along with the same smell. Umi finished the concoction with a gasp as the colour returned to her face.

"Tastes like melons." she commented, obviously feeling better.

"So who are you." Tsubasa asked nonchalantly. Catching Umi off guard.

"N-N-Nice to meet you I'm Corporal Sonoda Umi of the British 6th airborne division." Umi stared at the floor holding out her hand, ashamed at the lapse in etiquette. Tusbasa took it and shook it warmly before kissing Umi on both cheeks before the corporal could react.

"Oh and I didn't introduce myself, sorry." Maki didn't hold out her hand for Tsubasa to shake, not wanting to make the same mistake as her girlfriend who was now nearly a babbling mess. "Private Nishikino Maki RAMC also of the 6th airborne."

"It's about time you English got here; we've been waiting since 1940. I'm Kira Tsubasa, but just Tsubasa is fine Corporal." She said addressing a slightly more coherent Umi than before "ex-sergeant in the French army and now leader of A-RISE"

"You mentioned that earlier…" Maki noted "…but what is A-RISE?"

"It's a resistance group." Anju leant her weapon against the wall "A-RISE stands for La 2e Arrondissement Resistance pour Raser les Soldats des Envahisseurs, but we decided that it wasn't snappy enough, so we shortened it to A-RISE."

"Arrondissement…?" Maki thought back to her days before the war when she would sometimes visit France "shouldn't that make you Parisian?"

"You'd think but after one incident we had to flee Paris, and we ended up here, we just never changed our name though." Erena answered

"Ugh and the clothing out here is a mess as well I mean this is all I've got left from my collection of Chanelle." Anju pouted, looking at her blazer.

"Well if you didn't always wear your designer gear then maybe it wouldn't get wrecked? I mean whosever heard of a partisan fighter wearing high heels?" Erena scoffed.

"I'm not wearing them now am I?"

"Only because me and Tsubasa said we kick you out if you did it again!"

Umi and Maki looked at each other giggling at the scene before them, as Tsubasa waded in trying to break up the argument.

"What are you two doing here anyway? And why was she hungover?" she asked pointing at Umi having finally restored order

"Yeah! And what happened to our kitchen? There's blood everywhere!" Anju added

"Well you see we got separated from our section." Maki began her explanation "then Umi got shot during a battle with some Germans we ran into." I patched her up in the field but I knew we had to find somewhere to treat her or else it could get really serious. I was scared." Tears started forming in the corner of her eyes. "We had to find somewhere to do it though and we couldn't find anywhere but here. My morphine was broken and she was in so _much_ pain, so I got her drunk on brandy." Maki wiped the tears from her eyes; looking proudly at her companion for all that she had endured. "I managed to sew her up though and by the looks of things she'll be fine now. Hell she could probably take on the entire German army."

"We're sorry about your house." Umi summarised

"Well I guess it can't be helped then. I mean you were shot after all." Tsubasa placed a hand on Umi's shoulder. A glare silenced the protests of her subordinates. "So we should probably hep you two out then we'll give you some food and even a little alcohol for the pain if you want it."

"Thanks but that won't be necessary. Oh. One other thing." Umi bowed her head slightly pleading with the brunette in front of her "Can you help us find our way back to our friends?"

"Of course I'd be glad to help!" Umi smiled at Tsubasa's answer and the murmurs of agreement that came from her compatriots. "But do you even know where they are?"

Umi's grin fell, her face darkening, "No no we don't."

"Well that's not much of a problem." Maki spoke up "If I know Honoka…" The redhead put a reassuring arm around Umi's shoulders "…and the rest of that sorry lot they'll look for us. Probably while fulfilling their objective" she flashed a reassuring smile at her companion "So we should just head there they'll probably be standing over the wreckage of it by the time we get there."

"Maki…" Umi returned the smile before turning her head to look at Tsubasa once more. "So if we head for the bridge over the river Dives near the village of Manneils, our friends should be there."

"Looks like we'll be teaming up with you guys for a while." The members of A-RISE smiled and Tsubasa cocked her gun gesturing to the still broken door.

Maki picked up her crumpled beret from inside the piano case as she looked around the room once more the resistance fighters eager to leave. "Well then" Maki started "Shall we go?"

* * *

 **A/N: So I apologise for my terrible french it should all be grammatically correct but knowing my French A-Level result it probably isn't. so yeah A-RISE are in town and next time we reach the climax the assault on the bridge over the Dives. It should be fun.**

 **Glossary:**

 **Milice: A fascist paramilitary organisation set up by the french Vichy regime to aid in the buissness of occupation, and clamp down on resistance activity.**

 **Maquis,: Resistance members usually applied to those in mountainous areas. Also applicable FFI (French forces of the Interior)**

 **Smock: coat like outer jacket, often semi-waterproof used by the Paras and modern military units.**

 **For those weapons enthusiasts the full kit out of A-RISE is...  
Tsubasa: Sten Mk II, assorted grenades, mostly two fragmentation.  
Erena: MAS 36 Standard issue Bolt-action rifle of the French army in 1940.  
Anju: FM-29: Light machine gun used in the French army pre-war and in certain Free French units.**

On another note It would really help if you guys responded to the poll on my profile, you've got until the 08/07/16 (July).


	11. Chapter 9

**A/N: So welcome once more to the climax of the Overlord Arc, soon we'll move on to another operation I haven't decided what yet so I'll ask you all (see the poll on my profile).**

 **Last week was the last pre-written chapter so expect more sporadic updates as we go on.**

 **Still I'm pretty happy with how this turned out, enjoy.**

* * *

Muse Section: Chapter 9

6th June 1944 Pont sur Dives, Normandy

The quiet chirp of birds was all Honoka could hear across the gentle breeze that was blowing that morning, the loud crump of naval gunfire that had been audible in the distance had ceased for now. The soft rustle of clothing, and occasional rattle of equipment were the only indications of the team that were advancing up in formation behind her.

She checked her watch, sighing.

 _07:20 the troops must be landing on the beaches soon then._

Her mind flashed to her sister who would probably be jumping ashore at the head of her platoon right now. Honoka was worried as any good sibling would be, Yukiho had only got her commission recently, but right now she had to focus on her surroundings otherwise she wasn't just putting herself at risk but her friends as well.

And something wasn't right, the atmosphere felt wrong. Like there was a faint almost unknowable smell of danger in the air, a sense of foreboding that her instincts told her to pay attention to. It burned in the back of her mind, a hot coal among smouldering embers.

The Ginger NCO surveyed the silhouetted trees that rose over the next hedge indicating that they were nearly at their objective ready to begin a pincer movement on the German position. One of the trees though looked off. It was missing some branches on one side of it's trunk. And only that side...

Honoka put up her hand quietly signalling the team to halt, everyone crouching onto one knee as was expected. She turned around and beckoned over Hanayo with her hand silently, the brunette sprinted up the formation the grass rustling alongside.

"What is it?" the soft high voice of Hanayo called to her. Honoka glanced back to confirm who she was talking to.

"Does something feel off to you?"

Both girls listened to the sounds of morning for a moment in the few moments of silence followed.

"No…not really, why do you ask sergeant?"

"Something feels…wrong to me, I mean look at that tree it looks like someone snapped those branches off."

"It could be that the storm we had did that…" Hanayo pointed out.

"True, true…" Honoka gave a low hum, before rummaging through her webbing for a few moments, a silent 'aha' coming from her mouth on her finding and pulling out her binoculars. "I'll go take a look then". Honoka signalled for the squad to stay where it was before she sprinted the short distance to the hedge in front of her.

Honoka pushed her way slowly through the dense undergrowth until she could see the field beyond. Unsurprisingly it looked remarkably similar to the expanse of grass behind her. The expected that a dry stone wall blocked off her potential advance into the woods, and there was not a German in sight.

In theory; but Honoka couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

She was about to turn back, her fears only partially assuaged. Then a glint caught her eye. It was only brief, lasting less than a millisecond. The glint of something metallic in the tree was all the proof she needed, to confirm that she would not be easily strolling into those woods.

Honoka smirked, plotting out her plan of attack on the probable German position, she scrambled back through the foliage and across the field to her waiting compatriots.

She took in the size of the force she had at her disposal one last time, before signalling for everyone to gather around her.

"Right, it looks like Jerry is waiting for us over that hedge. But he's hidden right now my guess is that he's going to ambush us when we cross that next field." Honoka glanced at Hanayo who merely shrugged.

"So what are we doing then, do we go around, or deal with them where they stand? We've got no heavy firepower remember Nozomi and Eli are off flanking the enemy position." Nico asked the obvious question that hung on everyone's mind.

"Oh the plan is quite simple. On the other side of the hedge is a ditch that should provide enough cover, we advance like everything is normal and when we're there Mika and Hideko set up the PIAT in cover and blow up the wall in front of the tree with the broken branches."

The resident Anti-tank girl sighed placing the PIAT on the floor and twisting it sharply while placing her body weight on it to cock the spring loaded weapon.

"So I take it you two are happy with the role of fire support?" Honoka raised an eyebrow at the girl's reaction.

"It's not what we're made for but I'm sure that Hideko can manage, she's normally like this anyway sergeant don't read too much into it." Mika answered.

"So while those two rain fiery death on the Germans, the rest of us will move up using fire and movement as well as flanks to sweep clear the rest of the enemy."

"Sounds good." Nico noted giving her assent to the plan.

"Ok then any questions?" Honoka was greeted by a round of shaking heads. "Great! then let's get this done quick we can't have any hold up otherwise panzers might be pouring across that bridge to the beaches by lunch."

Honoka's little joke reminded everyone why they were there for a second.

The squad moved slowly towards the hedge dispersing a few meters between them they moved to the few gaps that existed in the hedge.

Honoka motioned them to move forward, they walked into what was undoubtedly the enemy's kill zone, the tension growing with each passing moment. She could feel the sights of the enemy on her, Honoka rapidly began questioning her tactical acumen like she always did when she did something borderline suicidal.

Quietly Honoka motioned as Hideko and Mika crossed the boundary between the two expanses of grass for them to get into position. The last thing Honoka saw before she heard the distinctive pop of the PIAT and all hell broke loose before was a slight movement behind the wall.

"SCATTER!"

The stones of the wall erupted skywards as the PIAT bomb exploded right on target flinging the Germans hidden behind it around like ragdolls. The Paras obeying Honoka's order ran in all directions spreading out across the field some joining Hideko and Mika in the ditch while firing, others going to ground where they stood.

The chatter of Nico's Sten tore through the residual silence in the aftermath of the explosion. The grey clad figures obviously stunned at their discovery fell before her hail of lead.

"MOVE UP! PUSH AROUND THEIR FLANKS!" Honoka ran diagonally across the field yelling to her assembled team mates. She looked behind briefly while designating the point she wanted her assault to follow with her hand, seeing Rin barrel past immediately afterwards. The crack of Hanayo's rifle and the pop of grenades against a backdrop of gunfire reminded her that she had a strong base of fire and the element of surprise on her side.

The sudden burst of fire erupted from another part of the stone wall. Another German machine gun opened up the sound of ripping cloth filling the air. Honoka threw herself to the ground bullets tearing up the dirt and grass surrounding her.

The ginger sergeant grimaced; a burst from her Sten did little to keep down the new threat. Honoka watched one of her team keep running towards the objective, her cries for her to get to cover falling on deaf ears. The NCO winced seeing the poor girl get cut down by the crushing fire. The bullets tearing into her jacket ripping of chunks of her flesh blood trickling down her clothes and staining the grass as she fell to the earth.

Honoka glanced back at her team after firing off another burst from her Sten at the Germans. Hanayo and the others providing cover were also coming under fire from the enemy, the brunette ducking behind the lip of the gully she was holed up in, rounds flying over her head.

Honoka saw Nico pointing frantically in her direction trying to alert the Mika and Hideko to the new threat, before running across the short distance between them.

The slight thud of a body landing beside her made Honoka jump, her head snapped around to see Rin lying next to her, mercifully unhurt; the two girls poured fire on the Germans temporarily shutting them up covering Nico's sprint past.

The echoes of battle were everywhere, but Honoka cocked her ear listening

"Rin! I need you to see how Eli's lot are doing, Jerry might've set up more than one ambush. You think you can out run a bullet?"

The glint of joy in the cat-like girl's eyes was palpable nodding furiously. "You can count on me Honoka, leave it to Rin ~nya." Her speed meant that it was almost like she had vanished from the NCO's sight, her gaze following the rapidly retreating silhouette of the runner watching her vault the hedge.

The buzz of bullets drew the ginger's attention back to the gun that was holding up their attack. Throwing caution to the wind Honoka pulled out a grenade preparing to throw it in a dash towards the enemy. The 'pop' that came behind her though and the explosion that shredded up the enemy position in a similar rain of metal and mud, dashing any of the NCO's plans for a glorious rescue of her team.

Wasting no time Honoka scrambled to her feet sprinting for a gap in the wall that would enable her to fire on the enemy's flank.

"Come on MOVE!" she screamed as she ran, pulling up one of the luckless volunteers by her webbing mid-run. Her legs smacking against the hard earth, another explosive round went into the ground causing the earth to shudder and further destroying the cohesion of the German soldiers.

The crack of a rifle was accompanied by the girl that Honoka had half shoved and half pulled with her falling to the ground, blood spurting from her neck, staining her strawberry blonde hair a garish shade of dark red.

"Fuck, Sniper!" Honoka's yell caused some of the girls who had been advancing to go to ground once more. The sergeant clenched her teeth in frustration, vaulting the low stone wall, nearly tripping over the dead body of a German soldier.

Sprinting to the nearest cover the Honoka's blue eyes noted that Nico was already there, duelling with a German twice her size, her bayonet already bloodied.

The colossal man was already covered in multiple small cuts implying that Nico had the upper hand. The muscular man swung at the lithe girl, Nico ducked inside his guard like a flash, his hand passing through thin air. He paid heavily for his lack of agility, Nico's blade sinking into the Germans belly Nico's forward momentum propelling him onto his back. The girl was relentless quickly withdrawing her blade stabbing it quickly into the bald man's heart, the slight register of pain on his face fading, the life draining from his eyes.

"Learn to dodge next time" Nico leant back against a tree, her sigh heavy with fatigue.

The ginger sergeant yanked down resident starlet behind a tree root opening up on the flank of what remained of the German position. The few dazed men that were still standing cut down by her and Nico's combined hail of mall calibre fire. Five quick cracks that finished off a few of them showed that Hanayo still had an eye on the position. The few remaining coherent Germans pulled back over the beyond the treeline into the small copse.

The solitary sound of a German rifle drew Honoka's attention to the tree that alerted her to the ambush, the small flash of green and grey indicating that particular piece of vegetation to be the sniper's nest. The next bullet took out a chunk of wood from the root Honoka was taking cover behind sending splinters flying. Honoka swore quickly pulling out and checking the weight of her Sten magazine, it was considerably lighter than before.

"Meh" The sergeant slammed the magazine back into the receiver and opened up on the offending tree with the rest of her magazine with a long aimed burst. Honoka systematically destroyed the tree, leaves and branches raining down from the sky, before long the sniper was also brought low his speckled green camouflage coat getting caught on one of the branches and suspending his now dead body a few metres off the ground.

It was over. Honoka smirked at the fact that the attempted ambush by the Germans had been turned on their head; clearly they hadn't expected the Paras to fight back.

The nearby sound of gunfire however indicated this was only the beginning. They may have triumphed but she didn't know about the others. Honoka motioned for the remainder of the team to form up on her, the girl who had been cut down by the machine gun was patched up but in a bad way, the one hit by the sniper was dead.

Honoka ordered the girls to set up a temporary defence, facing the direction of the bridge, her eyes turned to the surrounding countryside.

"Looking for Rin?" Honoka glanced over to find Hanayo at her side her worry for her boisterous friend showing through, her nervous fiddling giving it away, she was constantly adjusting her glasses fiddling with her rifle bolt and webbing straps.

"Yeah she should be back any-" Honoka's eyes strained seeing a figure vault the hedge once more sprinting towards her position. "Speak of the devil."

Hanayo gave an amused hum at the comment before running out to greet her friend.

"What's the latest Rin?"

The girl paused slightly catching her breath before answering. "Eli…said that she needs help immediately…she's…pinned down . Rin saw that they had at least four MGs on them and more."

The news hit Honoka like an anvil. "Four? How many casualties?"

"At least three maybe more…"

The moans of the wounded were punctuated by the distinct chatter of German machine gun fire. It sounded like Eli had walked right into one of the ambushes. The constant gunfire adding to her apprehension for the safety of her friends, and Kotori, but silence would be worse; silence meant that the guns had fulfilled their purpose and her friends were probably.

"Everyone get up we're moving to relive the other team, things are going badly for them, if we don't help they could be wiped out." the sergeant turned to Rin. "Go to Eli and tell her that we're on the way then help from her end, Hanayo you too."

"Right" the response was simultaneous from the both of the younger members, before they ran off over the fields of France.

"The rest of you on me, we've got a squad to bail out. Leave the wounded for now we can come back to them." The girls shifted uncomfortably at the thought of leaving their wounded comrade behind but all the same they got up and followed their sergeant, watching her steer a path to the left of the woods

"So much for tactical planning" Nico muttered softly just within Honoka's earshot.

* * *

The squad were on edge keeping an eye out for any change in the status quo, any change in the fire rate of the guns keeping their friends suppressed. Honoka tapped her finger on her Sten nervously checking the map for possible flanking routes. As it was there was an easy one, a path that led to the side of the German position from what Rin had told them where they could enfilade them, but there was no guarantee that the Germans weren't watching it.

The Ginger sergeant sighed, she was doing something stupid again the path wasn't the best option but they had no time to look for others, they'd have to improvise on the fly if this all fell apart.

Honoka motioned for the rest of the squad to follow her before she jogged across the road in front of her and up the small unbeaten track. She glanced behind checking to see if the team was actually following her every few steps.

Honoka increased her speed gradually becoming surer of the path she had chosen, the nettles and thin branches whipped at the NCO's exposed hands and face, the sounds of battle growing ever louder and louder, Honoka leading her troops pell-mell into over the crest of the slight hill in front of them bringing into view their objective.

The orchard was bordered on all sides by a stone wall similar to the one they had encountered earlier. The tracer fire of the machine guns streaming past and into the meadow below where Honoka could clearly see the majority of the other team either wounded and dead or huddled around Nozomi's Bren Rin and Hanayo a little distance away pouring fire into them.

Honoka threw herself against the wall taking aim at the busy German position the rest of the team established itself alongside her, she slipped a grenade out of her pocket, it would be a slaughter.

The Germans hadn't noticed them yet they were too busy firing on their friends in the meadow below, or scurrying around fetching ammunition. They were also down a slight slope as well that slightly hid Honoka from discovery, as well as giving her the height advantage.

Honoka waved at the others, pulling the pin on her grenade throwing it for all she was worth. Nico and others followed suit. The soft thuds of their landings were masked by the noise of gunfire and combat orders. But at least one German looked down at his feet before being thrown into the air in three pieces. The explosions were deafening causing Honoka's ears to ring; she opened up with her Sten, firing bursts at every figure that moved down there. The combined hail of death from Honoka and her comrades cut down numerous enemy soldiers, crippling their ambush.

Honoka looked down the slope to her Friend's position and waved at the blonde haired girl to advance. The Germans tried to switch their angle of fire but the lack of cover meant that they paid a heavy price in men.

The battle cry from the bottom of the slope drew her attention for a few seconds marvelling at the spectacle, Nozomi had picked up the Bren and charged up the slope firing from the hip at point blank range. The rest of Eli's squad had engaged in hand to hand combat with cold steel. Rin especially was enjoying herself cutting through the enemy like a blur of steel and blood. Only Kotori stayed back each crack of her rifle sending an enemy soldier down like a ton of bricks.

"Ah Fuck it! Fix bayonets!" Honoka's order was accompanied by the sound of multiple blades being unsheathed and the metallic clicks of them being fixed into place.

"CHARGE!" Nico took up the initiative to begin screaming across the orchard at the already confused and terrified Germans.

Honoka and her team smashed into the German flank, cries and pleas of mercy could be heard echoing across the field, Honoka's blade sinking into the back of a retreating officer. The girls fought tooth and nail to clear the remainder of the orchard using implements used for centuries: the butt of the rifle, the bayonet, their wits and their dexterity.

Honoka loosed off a burst at a clump of Germans who were on the verge of breaking sending them down wounded or fleeing for their lives, rifles discarded. More Germans began to filter away gradually; the paras smelt blood and took up firing positions and poured hell into the rapidly fading grey figures running back towards the bridge. Most fell to the ground wounded or dead, the withering fire of Sten and rifle, combined with Nozomi's Bren to make an inescapable kill zone.

Men fell like they were wheat harvested in the autumn. Only one sergeant remained standing stumbling over the ground fleeing for his life. Honoka gave the order to cease fire. The end of her bayonet dripping with blood. The whole affair had been bizarre, archaic, something out of the Napoleonic wars not the 20th century. She looked around seeing the rest of the section in a kind of shock over the events.

She ran around checking to see if they had any casualties, a Cut on Rin's forearm and a knock to the head for Eli were as bad as it got fortunately.

Honoka put on a smile; she walked up to Eli in the middle of the gore. The ground was littered with bodies, less than Honoka had expected but still enough to make her stomach curdle. Blood stained the green of the leaves and the first buds of the apples that dotted the surrounding trees, the few wounded groaned their dying breaths.

"How are you doing then?"

"We're fine, things were a bit sticky but thanks to you we've broken what looks like their main defences." Eli gestured to the other side of the orchard where the bridge was just visible a few hundred metres beyond.

"We should move on it now then." Honoka noted; Eli nodded in agreement. Both looked across at Rin making sure the girl was in earshot.

"No more bayonet charges though." they said in unison.

The team chuckled at the groan that came from the shorter ginger runner behind them.

"Rin bring up the engineers, they're going to be needed very soon; and see if they've got any white phosphorus grenades."

"Understood sergeant." the runner dashed off as though she hadn't just fought in exhausting hand to hand combat, the assembled women watched astounded

"Eli, Hanayo on me we're doing some recon. The rest of you take five until the engineers get here. " Honoka vaulted the wall, jogging out of the orchard; blue eyes sparkling.

* * *

"If they'd defended here we would've had a much harder time about it…" Eli examined the now deserted network of sandbags and slit trenches that were visible from behind a row of small shrubs that concealed the three scouting paratroopers.

"No doubt about that, this level of defence is a bit much for a bridge of this size." Honoka scanned the simple girder construction that spanned a small expanse of water that was the River Dives.

"At the very least we should have an easier time of it than before, there's nobody on this bank so we can turn their defences against them." Eli gave a slow hum of agreement to Hanayo's observation.

"I'm still worried about the activity on the opposite bank, if they've got some kind of radio there…" Honoka let the implication hang in the air for a brief moment, before she gave a shrug of her shoulders. "Ah well that's what the phosphorous is for and even then we don't have to hold the bridge. If we charge them now occupy those defences they'll find it hard to stop us from planting explosives. 'Especially considering how badly we gave them a damned good thrashing'." Honoka's mock posh voice teased out a smile from the two girls lying in the dirt beside her.

"Shall we go link up with the others then?-" Hanayo's question was interrupted by a crack from the other bank, German soldiers had opened up on their position in a slightly panicked warning display.

"No point sticking around here!" Honoka exclaimed jumping up, bullets rattling through the trees and impacting the ground near her feet.

"Wait a second…Honoka!" Eli's shout faded as Honoka sprinting through the Norman undergrowth back to the orchard noting that the engineers and Rin were back.

Her arrival was followed a few seconds later a panting Eli and a flustered Hanayo whose glasses were nearly falling off of her face clutching her rifle haphazardly between her arms.

"Don't do that again! Not everyone has your energy or your luck Honoka!"

"Sorry Eli-chan" Honoka clasped her hands together bowing in apology before turning back to the assembled squad with not a hint of remorse in her face. "So as I was saying…"

Eli sighed with Honoka proceeding to rattle off the plan of attack which consisted of Phosphorous used as a smoke screen and a liberal application of covering fire as they occupied the defences on their bank.

"Rin do the engineers have phosphorous?"

"Hmm. Oh yeah! here catch." Rin threw three green and black cylinders in her direction; causing Honoka to stumble back trying to catch the metal canisters She briefly read the black capital letters in the cylinders seeing the 'No.80 PHOS' printed on the smooth metal container.

"Great!" Honoka addressed the remainder of the soldiers pocketing the grenades. "Right everyone let's move check your ammo and it's a two meter spread towards those trenches. Run and fire in the open!"

The section advanced quickly across the orchard arriving soon at it's opposite edge in a tense silence.

The crack of a rifle shattered the calm a bullet ricocheting off of the stone wall in front of them from the opposite bank.

"Bloody Hell!" Honoka heard Nozomi swear the squad all ducking down. She looked across the bridge seeing a small contingent of enemy troops hunkered down in the hedges and a few sandbags near the other end of the bridge.

"We need to keep up momentum!" the energetic sergeant shouted, pulling a few of the soldiers near her up by the scruff of the neck, she vaulting over the low wall providing the only cover between her and the defences around the bridge. "Kotori you stay here and provide cover fire the rest of you on me!" her shouts carrying back over her shoulder to her colleagues over the 'snap' and chatter of sub-machine gun and rifle fire.

Honoka fumbled with her pockets trying to retrieve the phosphorous grenades that Rin had thrown at her earlier sprinted for her life her Sten hanging by its sling. Bullets flew through the air flinging dirt and moss was thrown skyward thumping into the ground.

The dull flashes coming from across the bank and the sound of the German guns was drowned out by a loud chatter from a Sten. Honoka glanced behind her shoulder throwing herself at the last few meters seeing a few of the section Stopped and firing from a stable position. Nico was just behind her and emptying magazine after magazine into the opposite bank. Although she couldn't see Kotori at the edge of the orchard where she was supposed to be, Honoka shrugged it off her mind returning to her still ringing ears

 _I'll have to have a go at Nico for deafening me later. S_ he smiled at the thought of the playful arguments that it would create.

Honoka skidded the final few feet along the jagged dirt and tarmac, the ground biting angrily at her shins and knees. The NCO bit her lip trying to block out the pain while she pulled the pin on her grenade before throwing the heavy metal container as far as she could. Taking a few seconds to watch it trace a graceful arc through the sky Honoka heard the sound of a body impacting the cover next to her.

"Kotori?!" Honoka stared at the Brown haired sniper who was currently taking aim next to her "What are you doing here you had a much better firing position up there " the incredulous sergeant threw her hand up gesturing at a position closer to the orchard.

"I'm not letting you leave me behind again Honoka-chan! I'm following you until death do us part." The determination in the girls golden eyes was clear and her point was emphasised by the crack of her rifle finishing her sentence

 _Damnit Kotori, normally when you do stuff like this it's sweet but right now?_ Honoka's face went through several iterations of frustration and the usually softer look she used for her friend.

Tuning her gaze away from the penetrating look that the sniper was shooting her, Honoka rapidly pulled the pin on another smoke grenade throwing it some distance to the left, before lobbing the last one right behind the German sandbags.

Honoka smiled all of the grenades had landed on the opposite bank and now the burning chemical would provide visual cover as well as drive back the enemy, especially after that last throw. The three successive pops of the grenades' explosions covered the opposite bank in billowing white smoke.

The cries of those men unfortunate enough to have been caught in the chemical echoed across the narrow river, tearing at Honoka's soul. She felt a twinge of guilt for using such a cruel weapon against people who at the end of the day were humans as well.

 _The girls come first Honoka._ She chided herself. _Half of them would be dead if we continued in the open._

"COME ON! MOVE UP!" Honoka shouted to the rest of the section giving off a quick burst on her Sten, watching Nozomi sprint with an unearthly speed that shouldn't be possible when carrying a machine gun.

The smoke cover and the concentration of firepower appeared too much for the Germans who fell back under a blaze of lead, Honoka watched Eli and Hanayo rapidly cause the Germans to hit the deck suppressing them with well-aimed rifle fire. The slow steady thud of Nozomi's Bren delivering the coup de grace with one German was gunned down trying to make a charge in the direction of the bridge.

"ENGINEERS MOVE! We haven't got all day!"

The commanding NCO of the engineers, a Sergeant with light blue hair, gathered her team and ran out into the fray, bullets ringing off of the girders in dangerous ricochets. The small group of about five girls worked furiously wiring up the explosives and occasionally ducking and shooting at the retreating figures of the German soldiers.

A low whistle came from Nico's direction. "Those engineers are braver than I thought." The black haired girl leaned on the sandbags her Sten hanging limply at her side. Nozomi and Kotori kept up a withering wall of fire at the rapidly receding German soldiers, they quickly disappeared into the undergrowth of Normandy.

"Is that it ~nya" Rin asked also lowering her weapon with the passing of the immediate threat. A brief calm descended the few remaining wisps of phosphorous drifting away on the opposite bank.

"Probably not but we don't need to hold this place for long. So by the time it kicks up again we'll be gone." Eli's dry assessment of the situation echoed over a more silent battlefield. Naval artillery and the distant sound of planes making them remember they weren't the only people fighting for their objectives right now.

"Charges ready to go sergeant!" the blue haired engineer NCO called back from near the rusting grey metal barriers either side of the road deck.

"Ok over you go. Keep an eye out everyone." Honoka watched drily the engineer sling the bundles of plastic explosive over her shoulder, carrying the fuses in one hand climbed over the side of the bridge making her way to its underside.

"Do any of you hear that?" Hanayo asked turning her head towards what must've been the direction of the noise.

Honoka shook her head listening intently for a few seconds, there was nothing except the distant sounds of the landing. "I can't hear-".

A low rumble was audible, just slightly but it was getting louder and louder, closer and closer. The bushes on the opposite bank started shaking and the noise became a high whine.

Nico leaned over the sandbags trying to see if the source of the noise was visible "What is that?" Honoka shook her head in answer to Nico's question.

The front shrubs abruptly lurched forward with a loud 'CRASH' being crushed under the front wheels of a grey hulking machine.

"Oh bloody hell! HALFTRACK!" Honoka yelled a warning to the engineers exposed on the bridge.

The girls on the bridge looked up dumbstruck at the noise and at Honoka's shout, they stood motionless like rabbits caught in the headlights.

The halftrack's MG opened up bullets pinging off of the rigid metal structure. Too late the engineers snapped out of their trance. Two fell clutching their limbs blood springing from the holes carved from their bodies by the lead projectiles. One fell guttering , her own life-giving blood betrayed her filling her lungs, her body having been torn open by the short sharp burst of fire. She fell her body impacting the ground with a crack her blonde hair spilling out from her helmet. Her eyes looked on unseeing, like those of a dead fish.

Honoka and the girls watched on with unbridled horror and surprise at the scene unfolding before them. The engineers began running back to the safety of cover; the two wounded dragging themselves through the hail of death below the relative safety of the metal side of the bridge dropping down into a slit trench panting.

A loud cry followed by a splash followed Honoka looked down stream to see the blue haired engineer floating face down the murky water around her stained a muddy red. Clutched in her cold dead hand was a mess of wires.

 _The charges…fuck! What now?_ Honoka's mind raced trying to find an answer to that question, the ripping sound of machine gun fire temporarily reordering her priorities.

"Hideko! Target that half-track now!" Honoka screamed, he machine gun tracing its deadly arc towards their position.

The loud pop followed the sergeant's order the shell tracing a lazy arc towards the half-track exploding in a near miss.

The Half-tack disgorged its cargo of soldiers while clods of dirt spiralled into the air. The PIAT Crew worked silently in the face of targeted fire and their previous failure. "Last one! Mika's admission of an empty ammo container meant this had to count.

Hideko fired off her last shot towards the lightly armoured vehicle. The shell once more traced the same curved path, this time hitting the front of the grey armour exploding hot metal slicing through both man and machine culminating in a large fuel explosion.

"Open fire on them!" Honoka's cry was immediately followed by a hail of bullets pinning down her team.

"We're too bunched up sergeant; none of us can get a clear shot off!" Eli yelled crawling towards Nozomi's Bren Gun.

The rest of the section tried to gun down the new arrivals, but were pinned down by the rapid fire of the enemy MG.

 _No PIAT, no charges pinned down, how are we going to do this? How can we do this?_

A large explosion ripped through the German squad, sending two of them flying and silencing the gun. The survivors were chased off or cut down a new loud thudding sound, bullets kicking up dirt all around them. A new machine had opened up on them on their side of the bank. Four flashes were visible just beyond the leaves and the moss.

The Germans fell back to the burning wreck of the half-track. The sharp cracks of a rifle coming from across the river as well, causing at least one grey clad soldier to fall to the floor blood flowing into his lungs through the new hole in his throat.

"What's going on?" Kotori enquired, Honoka shook her head in reply; as bewildered by the spectacle as the rest of her squad.

A female figure in a white jumper wearing a black beret burst out of the foliage from the opposite bank. Honoka saw that she was carrying a satchel of some kind and grasped on old Sten in her right hand.

"Hold your fire!" her sharp order brought down the weapons of the section which had jumped up pointing at the new player in the engagement when the satchel girl ran onto the bridge.

Machine-gun fire followed her, the Germans noticing the girl opened fire once more their rounds ringing off of the metal of the steel structure.

The owners of the final two weapon flashes on the opposite bank revealed themselves, two people stepping out of the Bocage. Clad in the green and brown dappled smocks of the parachute regiment, red berets perched on the red and blue hair of each girl. They fired their Sten Mk Vs into the German position keeping their heads down moving slowly with the training that only came from years of training and combat experience.

"Umi…Maki My God!" Honoka exclaimed the identities of the new arrivals becoming glaringly obvious.

"Looks like we didn't need to look for them after all." Nico's grin was replicated on the faces of every section member watching their friends move tactically in their direction, covering the end of the bridge.

The girl with the satchel vaulted the opposite side of the bridge, the metal walls now providing her with cover.

"Covering Fire!" Honoka yelled clutching her Sten scrambling down the bank to see what satchel girl was doing. The remaining squad stopped gawking at the arrival of their previously lost comrades and opened fire on the German position pinning them down so heavily that if they took anymore cover they would be miners not soldiers.

Honoka watches the girl clamber around the underside of the bride muttering to herself as she went. Finally a look of satisfaction appeared on her face and she unslung her satchel planning it on a small metal pan below the bridges structure before taking a small box and a trail of wire out of it. Her task seemingly complete she began climbing back up the bridges exterior taking care not climb up on the side opposite the German soldiers.

"What are you doing?" Honoka shouted at the girl anxious to confirm her suspicions.

"Quoi? Désolé je ne comprends pas." The girl shouted back a look of annoyance crossing her face at being questioned while she clung on for dear life bullets pinging all around her.

 _Crap doesn't look like she speaks English. Still that looks like a detonator box better tell the girls we're pulling out._

Honoka climbed onto the slight ledge protruding from the bridge near her foot and extended her hand to the satchel girl.

The girl smiled gratefully clasping Honoka's hand, both of them edging their way back onto the Paras' bank. They both crashed onto the soft muddy grass, the satchel girl landing on top of Honoka. In any other situation they might've laughed, now however they both scrambled to their feet jogging up the bank Bullets still zipping through the air in all directions.

Satchel girl waved across the river at the people still fighting on the opposite bank gesturing for them to join her.

The Sergeant watched Umi tap Maki's shoulder and both girls began moving across the bridge, Maki walking backwards covering the Germans delivering the occasional burst of walking fire. Two more girls emerged from the opposite bank one clad in a green blazer and bonnet carrying the light machine gun that had been firing until a few seconds ago, the other sprinted for the bridge dashing for their bank, her purple hair flowing behind her creating the impression that she was wearing a cape of some sort.

The section poured on fire covering the four other girls arrived, the bursts of sub-machine gun fire and Hanayo's mad minutes filling the air.

"We're pulling out; our friend here has set charges on the bridge so we need to move!" Honoka took in the weary nods of the girls still firing at the Germans, the remaining engineers all looking shell shocked nodded slowly.

"On my mark, you four stay here covering us then pull back ten seconds later." Honoka circles her hand around Rin, Hanayo and her machine gun team, all four girls nodding in understanding.

"Got it Sergeant! Rin'll keep them off you."

"Try not to get shot now you lot, things tend to be more interesting that way."

Honoka rolled her eyes at Nozomi's comment, she watching Nozomi let off another burst the brass casings fall from the bottom of the Bren.

"MARK!" Honoka watched everyone make a dash for the treeline, the two wounded engineers carried by their comrades. Satchel girl trailing a spool of wire, that lead back to the charges under the bridge no doubt, Honoka herself began sprinting away following her squad into a deep ditch a small distance away from the bridge itself.

Satchel girl set about wiring up the detonator box that she had produced earlier, Nozomi and the rest of them crashing through the shrubs screening their position from the Germans view seconds later.

"Hit it!" Honoka yelled to the satchel girl, the brunette blinked slightly taking a moment to process what Honoka had said before twisting the plunger on top of the box.

An almighty roar of the charges detonating rolled across the squad the heat could be felt even as far away as they were, the noise was deafening, and the shockwave rolled over the countryside with the ground shaking, the shrubs bending backwards. The plume of water created by the charges and the bridge crashed into the shallow water was huge; drops of water began raining down on them. Honoka risked a look over the shrubs to see that they had been successful the entire structure had been brought down and was nothing more than a mangled mess of twisted metal.

* * *

The squad began cheering their ears still ringing from the explosion the sergeant noticed Umi slumped up against Maki exhausted; the redhead's blush even fiercer than normal. Honoka wandered up to the both of them, her grin barely contained by her face.

"Sergeant…sorry we got a little lost-" Maki's response and curt nod was cut off by Honoka wrapping both of her arms around the pair. Both girls stiffened slightly at the sudden contact but soon settled into the hug.

"Don't you two scare us like that again OK?" Honoka felt tears prick the corners of her eyes both girls nodding in response. The three of them stayed like that for a few more seconds before the ginger sergeant released them from her grip. Both girls were blushing furiously and their eyes were also tearing up, although Honoka knew neither would admit it.

The rest of the section gathered around the two prodigal members, Kotori practically tackling Umi with her hug when Honoka pulled away. All the girls were welcoming the members back into the fold, the hugs and soon tears flowed freely.

Honoka felt a solitary tear roll down her cheek at the touching sight in front of her. She stood up viewing the touching reunion before her the girls fawned and fussed over Umi and Maki; questioning them about what had happened, gasping when they saw Umi's wound.

A light tap on her shoulder caused Honoka to turn around; the girl in a white jumper who no longer had a satchel was standing behind her, looking her up and down. Honoka blushed at the close scrutiny of her gaze, realising that she hadn't gotten a proper look at the girl who had come to their rescue and helped her friends.

She was stunning, simply amazing.

Honoka looked her up and down dumbstruck by the simple beauty of the girl in front of her.

Her clothes were simple, her black stockings ripped in places drawing Honoka's eye up her legs, her knees had a light dusting of mud from when she had fallen on Honoka earlier. Honoka's gaze sauntered upwards to her sumptuous thighs. Her skirt was simple but it accentuated her wide hips perfectly. The woollen jumper wasn't exactly the sort of thing someone would wear in June and the white fabric was also speckled with mud and grime in places, it hung around her body loosely, yet somehow emphasising to Honoka's view the modest swell of her bust. Her neck traced a slender line from her collar to her jaw line. Her brown hair fell about her shoulders in messy waves, simple black beret perched on her head pushed back far over her crown.

Her face was a vision, a piece of renaissance artwork at its finest and made flesh. Her skin was soft and inviting, yet it followed clearly chiselled lines, like the finest marble it was smooth. The gentle curve of her lips made them appear plumper than Honoka suspected was humanly possible, the two pink outcrops appearing like two finely carved pink opals. Her nose drew a gentle line drawing Honoka's gaze to her forehead. There it sat in the middle of her face, dominating all else like a slab of marble, yet Honoka found it charming, the way her fringe sometimes intruded on the pristine clearness of her forehead, it had an almost magnetic quality to it Honoka could feel herself being drawn to, wanting to stroke it, to kiss it. The forehead perfectly proportioned her face and drew attention to her eyes, the piercing green making them shimmer almost like emeralds, their expressive quality not lost on Honoka, she looked into the mysterious depths of the Frenchwoman before her.

She was smitten.

"Ah sergeant, I suppose I should introduce you." Maki appeared next to them as if by magic, making Honoka worry about how long she was staring, or if it was obvious. "This is Kira Tsubasa leader of the A-RISE Resistance group" the redheaded Medic continued, "she started out in Paris then ended up here, she might be staying with us for a while…"

Maki introduced Honoka to Tsubasa, Honoka put out her hand to shake Tsubasa's, the other girl took it shaking it a few times. Honoka struggled to maintain her composure she absorbed every detail of the moment; the smoothness of her skin, the way that her face turned red and the fact that her knees felt like they would give out any second. She almost whimpered when the dazzling resistance leader let go of her hand.

"So you're from Paris then? Ever been to the Champs-Élysées? What's it like?" Honoka spluttered out, briefly regaining her composure.

Tsubasa raised a quizzical eyebrow waiting for a few moments before Honoka remembered that she didn't speak English.

 _Bollocks bollocks bollocks, why didn't I study French better in school._ Honoka inwardly cursed her past self for her lack of an attention span.

"Errr…Voulez vous…" Honoka struggled for the word for go "Peloter?" her compatriots faces were of little help, Maki simply turned red which wasn't much use as an indicator. "Voulez vous de peloter ma Champs-Élysées?" Tsubasa looked taken aback by Honoka's question, a blush dusting her cheeks for a few seconds before she giggled at the bewildered ginger's question, her laughter pealing across the countryside like a wind-chime in the soft summer breeze.

"What did I say wrong?" Honoka asked Maki who was red from head to toe her face buried in both hands in frustration. The redhead certainly didn't have Umi's patience or Kotori's diligence.

"My God Honoka! What you said was not 'Have you been to the Champs-Élysées?' you asked her if she'd like to feel up your Champs-Élysées."

"So what is the past tense for the word for go then?"

"Partir into Partis but that's not important! You do know she's fluent in English! Honestly I can't deal with you sometimes, I'm going to get Umi!"

"Wait what?" Honoka was surprised at this revelation "You speak English?!"

"Very well, my mother was an Englishwoman you see so I speak it fluently as easily as I can breathe." The resistance girl's voice came out clear, with only a slight French accent cutting through Honoka's ears like a burst of sunshine.

"So why didn't you answer me back then in English?"

Tsubasa laughed again, "Because it's a weird question to ask someone you've just met on the battlefield." Tsubasa took a step forward narrowing the gap between her and the flustered ginger like it was nothing. "But to answer your question I have been there and it is very picturesque; although it wasn't anywhere near half as lovely as you are." Tsubasa lowered her voice for the last part, lacing it with suggestion and insinuation.

Honoka gulped her blush rising again at the compliment. Her knees began to fail her once more. "Really." She stood frozen to the spot by Tsubasa's aura amazed at how she could be paralyzed so easily by this girl she had just met.

"Of course, that road is only buildings but you on the other hand…are something else." Tsubasa stepped forward again, what little space remained between the two felt charged with electricity and emotion.

The magnetic pull of Tsubasa's words, her body and her aura was becoming impossible to resist, Honoka's brain going into overdrive blood rushing through her ears so hard that she could hear it, the thump of her chest, she was sure, was all too conspicuous.

Tsubasa closed what remained of the distance between them, her body just barely touching Honoka's. It was easy for her, like taking a bite of food.

Tsubasa lightly traced her hand affectionately up Honoka's arm, drawing the ginger in closer to her face until her lips were mere millimetres from her's, Honoka felt goosebumps rise under her jacket. Both girl's examined the other's face intently memorising every detail. Honoka gulped again, the tension in the atmosphere was nearly unbearable. Yet she was almost disappointed when Tsubasa continued her journey stopping next to Honoka's ear.

"I might still take you up on your earlier offer though at some point in the future, Honoka-chan~" the resistance fighter drew away quickly opening up the gap that had existed between them again. She flashed a grin at the completely seduced sergeant before she walked off to introduce herself to the rest of the group.

Honoka collapsed, her knees giving out from underneath her, overawed completely, she almost felt as though she had been stripped by the charming Frenchwoman and that she had become her clothes, because without her Honoka felt naked.

"That was not fair." She muttered to herself staring out over the Norman countryside. "How smooth can one person be?" a smile grew on her lips recognising the challenge at hand. "Well next time we'll just have to beat her, won't we?"

 _If she sticks around this is going to be an interesting war._

* * *

 **A/N: So yeah...Honoka is so gay for Tsubasa. :) Still KotoHono fans despair not she isn't out of the picture yet.**

 **Over 8k Words I'm actually quite impressed with my self. It's over double my previous record.**

 **Once more I ask for you all to give your views on the Poll on my profile about the Revolutionary fic I have brewing, this is the last time I'll actually remind you here but still your views are valued. as are your views on where we go after Normandy, this is kind of an alternate history fic after all.**

 **And now it's actually _on_ my profile because like an idiot I forgot to make it visible for those of you who made the effort, sorry about that **

**Obligatory poor french apology, (although Honoka's is supposed to be terrible)**

 **Glossary:**

 **Half-track: A light armoured vehicle incorporating both wheels and caterpillar tracks used by both Allies and Axis often as an infantry transport. for those who are interested the mark used is a** **. 251**

 **Phosphorous grenades: Used as smoke grenades and anti-personel grenades by British and commonwealth forces in WW2 the smoke emitted would caused burning and blistering of the skin, the mark used as mentioned is a Mk.80 PHOS technically designed for use by Tanks smoke grenade launchers, but it is closest to what we know as a true smoke grenade.**


	12. Chapter 10

**A/N: Sorry this is a day late, words cannot express the deep shame I feel. (just kidding, I am sorry though)**

 **Here ends the Overlord Arc, so lets get to it.**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 10

7th June 1944, Somewhere Near Manneils, Normandy

Umi wriggled uncomfortably, opening her eyes, sitting up she yawned loudly. The ground was not the best place to spend the night if you wanted rest. Her limbs ached from all the running yesterday and her head was groggy from her relative lack of sleep.

Her wound in her abdomen still throbbed dully with pain, but at least it was no longer the sharp stabbing pains that she had tried to keep hidden from Maki or the new resistance girls yesterday, more like a constant ache. It was an irritation not a problem now.

Umi groaned stretching her arms and limbs getting the blood flowing through them again and expelling the last of the tiredness from her system in the process, a second yawn coming out of her mouth as she did so.

She looked around the small wooded clearing where the section had spent the night. Morning sunlight filtering through the trees would have added a touch of beauty and mystery to the place; instead all she got was the dull grey of overcast skies visible beyond the mottled shades of green above her.

The section had spent the night out in the field; Maki had had to take care of the wounded they had amongst them, and by the time that was done it was nearly dark, so Honoka had suggested they camp out. The resistance leader, Tsubasa, had offered her farmhouse for them, but Maki had refused point-blank to allow it, turning the shade of a tomato, babbling on about how they couldn't intrude a second time before muttering something inaudible about memory.

The redhead had a point though the house was over the river and all the bridges over it _should've_ been destroyed by then, so there was no way back across it to the farmhouse where she'd received her treatment. Tsubasa then led them to a nearby clearing where each had taken turns on sentry duty while the rest slept on the floor, Umi had taken first watch knowing the others wouldn't wake her up when it was her turn because she was wounded.

"Hey how are you doing? Did you sleep well?" The question throwing the blue haired corporal out of her reverie, she groggily threw her gaze at Eli, the bags under her eyes, and her shattered posture indicating that she'd been on sentry duty for way too long.

"No not really. But seeing as you took Nozomi's watch _again_ I probably had a better night that you." The corporal smirked; the small jump from Eli revealing that she was right about why the Blonde was so tired.

"I-I didn't mean…it's just Nozomi looks really cute when she'd sleeping." Eli's stuttering trailed off into a whisper, she saw Umi's gaze towards her soften.

"I'm just worried, if you keep pushing yourself for another person, you'll both get hurt if you fail." Umi watched Eli nod lightly the blonde agreeing, before a smile spread on her face.

"Like you're one to talk. Every time your girlfriend even blushes you fall apart and are basically putty in her hands." Umi became the same colour as Maki's hair and steam was nearly visible coming from her ears, Eli folded her arms grinning, her point proven by Umi's reaction.

"T-T-That's not what I meant! I-I don't even have a girlfriend anyway, Me and Maki…the whole idea is just shameless!"

"I never mentioned Maki did I?" Eli watched Umi go silent, her blush deepening and her eyes briefly going wide with realisation, the NCO processing her Freudian slip.

Umi opened her mouth once more after a few seconds of awkward contemplation, but before she could protest they were interrupted by a loud clattering noise.

"WAKEY WAKEY!" Honoka shouted, banging her mess tin with a spoon her noise causing a few birds that had been twittering to fly off in fright. The sleeping girls woke up in varying degrees of irritation, the main section was used to it, but A-RISE clearly weren't.

"Sergeant…" Anju smiled, like the ginger madwoman was the most charming thing in the world, but her eyes and tone told a different story.

"Good Morning everyone!" Honoka's cheery smile contrasted with the annoyed expressions of most of the clearings occupants.

Umi face-palmed at her friend's inability to read a situation. "Oh Honoka…why just why?" she muttered under her breath.

Fortunately people simply viewed the rude awakening as a mild irritation, and with most used to being woken up by Officers and NCOs who were much ruder than Honoka , they simply got up and went about their morning routine.

Umi glanced back to Eli, but the sentry had already disappeared to try and pry apart Nozomi and Nico who were already arguing this early in the morning. Apparently from what Umi could hear not everyone thought Nozomi's sleeping habits were as cute as Eli did. She sighed and got up herself properly, which entailed splashing water on her face and opening up a can of Spam to eat for breakfast.

She put on her webbing and slung her Sten over her shoulder, watching, everyone else do the same tasks as they got ready to go out into the world. Umi watched them all chatting and joking amongst themselves; Umi would go and talk to Maki but she was attending to her new patients, redressing their wounds and making sure their night on the ground hadn't done any more damage to them.

Tsubasa was openly trying to chat up Honoka and flirt with her like she had done all of yesterday evening, reducing their sergeant to a blushing stuttering mess that unnerved Umi because that was normally her reaction, the brunette had really taken a shine to her according to Erena. Kotori was shadowing Honoka like normal, occasionally throwing lines her way or trying to drag her away from Tsubasa, while failing due to the subtle directions of the green eyed A-RISE leader.

Somehow despite being under assault from all sides, Honoka with a grace and tact that was partly accidental and still amazed Umi. Managed to plan a route and an order of march for their way back, as well as count up their ammunition and make arrangements for the wounded.

Umi watched Honoka signal the section to gather round, groaning, she got up and walked over to the centre of the clearing, her wound aching again Umi watched, Maki keep flicking her eyes in her direction, more often than she normally would.

 _Why is she doing that? She's blushing a lot more than she normally would as well, nothing has happened recently. Right ?_

Umi put the question to the back of her mind and instead re-focussed on what Honoka was saying.

"So that's all then any questions?" Umi gasped quietly realising that she hadn't been listening, and that she'd just done the thing that she always lectured Honoka on.

 _Oh God the hypocrisy…_

Umi's self-loathing was interrupted by Rin who luckily for Umi's reputation as the sensible one, apparently also hadn't been listening. Honoka smiled telling her not to worry before briefly explaining the arrangements that she'd gone over.

"Are we all good then?" Umi asked to cover up her faux-pas.

A round of shaking heads greeted her as the squad all got up and started walking off in the direction of the nearby village in a messy sort of single file formation that Umi slipped into the middle of as the cut their way through the undergrowth of the woods.

* * *

Umi spied Maki walking a few paces in front of her, the redhead keeping an eye on the wounded girls walking a few paces in front of her, like any good doctor. Umi smiled at the care and attention that Maki gave to her patients, something she loved about the stubborn girl was her deep capacity for empathy.

 _Even if she doesn't always show it._

Still Maki had been more…distant, the past day or so. Umi's face screwed up in a fleeting grimace as the thoughts crossed her mind about how she was casually being avoided by her… well Umi wasn't sure what they were. They were lovers in every sense of the word, but both of them were much too shy, or stubborn to admit it. The mere flash of the word across her mind with all its meaning and suggestion caused Umi's cheeks to heat up.

Umi didn't like it though, something was up, she thought; jogging up the formation to fall in step next to the medic.

She tapped Maki lightly on the shoulder, causing the younger girl to jump startled upon seeing who it was walking next to her.

"Are you Ok?" Umi asked

"Y-Yeah I'm fine." Maki stared into the ground in front of her, twirling her hair and not meeting Umi's eyes, her answer was unconvincing.

"Are you sure? You've been kind of avoiding me since yesterday…"

"I've just been busy, that's all."

Umi scoffed at the obvious excuse "With three people? Come Maki we both know that you can deal with at least six walking wounded and two unconscious, and not even break a sweat."

Maki sighed, her gaze still firmly on the ground in front of her. "I'm fine Umi."

"You can't even meet my eyes, what happened, what is it that I did?"

Maki tensed slightly at the last question, before giving her answer uneasily "There was a time when we both struggled with that, remember? And you didn't do anything."

Umi shook her head, unsure of the answer given. "You weren't even like this two days ago, the only thing that I can't really remember is that farmhouse, so if it's something I did I'm sorry." The corporal noticed that every time she mentioned the farmhouse Maki tensed up again, the light blush decorating her cheeks suddenly became a deep red that matched the beret on her head

"Tell me Umi what do you remember about the farmhouse?"

Umi paused for a second placing her finger on her chin remembering back. "Well I remember being shot, the searing pain, and I remember you…your voice was what got me through it. We arrived at the farm and you kicked down the door before putting me on the table. It didn't really hurt by that point I think, but I can't really remember. After that you got me drunk then my memory is really hazy, the next concrete thing I remember is waking up with a huge hangover the next morning."

The redhead breathed a sigh of relief her shoulders relaxing visibly and her blush dying down. "Ok that's fine not much happened after that."

"Are you sure? I feel like something must've happened to make you worried, because I can vaguely remember you screaming my name quite a bit…come to think of it I remember you saying my name a lot that night. Do you know why that is?"

Maki clammed up again, the look of relaxation on her face gone. Her blush returned in ever greater intensity, her shoulders became tense once more; it looked like she was shivering slightly as well. "Oh!" she suddenly exclaimed "Look at that Rin's calling me over, got to dash! I'll see you later Umi." Umi looked behind her to see Rin walking in a slight daze with Hanayo, both of them eating and chatting with each-other.

The Medic thumped Umi's shoulder running down the formation to greet Rin, who was nonchalantly munching her rations.

Umi sighed at the terrible excuse Maki had come up with. Something was up something that Maki wasn't telling her for whatever reason. Clearly it was troubling her, and Umi really hated to see Maki in any kind of internal turmoil; plus if Maki avoiding her was a new normal she was going to miss their conversations, their occasional stolen kisses, and the spark of electricity that passed between the two whenever their hands accidentally brushed together.

 _She feels the same way right? I have to find out what happened that night._

A cry interrupted Umi from her reverie, she saw someone else weave their way through the wounded girls walking in front of her. Umi watched the section sniper deftly make her way towards her position. Kotori's ashen hair was spilling out of her helmet in an untidy mess and her rifle carried across her body like it always was. Her expressive golden eyes made it plain that Kotori wanted to talk to her.

"Hey what is it?"

"Oh nothing I just wanted to talk with you Umi-chan~" Kotori grinned suspiciously.

Umi narrowed her eyes analysing Kotori's face and her true intentions "What do you want?" she asked.

"Nothiiiing" she whined "I just wanted to talk…although now that you ask what do you know about that Tsubasa woman?" even Kotori's sweet tone and charming smile couldn't hide the venom in her voice when she spat out Tsubasa's name like it had a bad taste to it.

"About as much as you do I've only known her for a day longer…Honoka probably knows more about her than I do…but I'm guessing that she's the reason you're asking about Tsubasa."

Kotori remained silent, her smile fading as Umi's guess hit its mark. "Honoka went off on recon ahead, she didn't even take me like she normally would, and instead she took _that_ woman." she recalled the moment that Honoka's face had light up at the resistance leader's offer to go with her. How she had run off before Kotori could offer her services as well. The gloom that the sniper had been trying to hide rose to the surface.

Umi gazed at the sadness in her friend's face, she slung up her Sten and threw her arms around the Markswoman's shoulders hugging her for a second while Kotori buried her face into her shoulder.

"Why? Why Umi-chan? Why doesn't she realise how I feel about her? She keeps flirting with her right in front of me and each time it hurts, every time she laughs like she used to do around me…it hurts." Kotori's eyes grew heavy with budding tears, her voice becoming more and more strangled.

Umi let go of her friend motioning that they should keep moving so they didn't hold up the formation. "I don't know Kotori…I honestly don't. I can't say whether or not Honoka is smitten with Tsu-" Umi stopped on seeing the hostility in Kotori's face to that name "… with _that_ woman. But one thing I do know is you can't give up, if you do it's all over, as long as you keep trying to be sincere I'm sure that Honoka will notice one day, she's just a little dense when it comes to things like this isn't she?"

The flaxen haired girl nodded slowly, plodding forward. "Yeah, you're right. I just need to show Honoka-chan how much I care for her. I've taken her for granted for too long now I need to make her see how well we go together. After all she did promise we'd be together _forever_ …"

Umi's smile disguised the doubts that she had about telling Kotori to keep pushing; she didn't like the intonation of the last word too. The girl was fragile, her father had been killed at Dunkirk and after that she had always been fiercely protective of those things that she considered precious to her.

"Thanks Umi-chan!" Kotori nearly tackled her friend with her hug before running off grinning, returning to the same old Kotori she always was.

Worry lines appeared on her forehead while she recalled the discussion she'd had with A-RISE last night.

" _Are you sure you want to do this Kira-san?"_

" _Yep I'm sure, and please call me Tsubasa we'll be colleagues soon after all."_

 _Umi blinked through the darkening sky to see Tsubasa's face lit up in a big smile befre she skipped off to go and tease Honoka some more._

 _Tthe same smile wasn't so easily replicated on her compatriots faces but still there was a receptiveness to this idea._

" _Are you two Ok with this? She isn't pushing you into it right?"_

 _Erena nodded slowly "sure it was always the plan that we join the Free-French when we could this is just finalising the Unit we'll join."_

" _Plus being a paratrooper sounds kind of fun anyway, and this way we get to stick with you lot if that's Ok with you?" Anju piped up._

 _The corporal nodded she didn't really have any objections but it just seemed a little rushed._

" _But are you doing it for the right reasons?"_

 _Both girls placed their hands on Umi's shoulder's sparkling smiles on their faces._

" _Umi darling, there is no better reason to do things than love. That is the one thing we are sure about." Anju patted the bluenette's shoulder lightly._

 _Erena nodded in agreement, her face a mask of profound understanding. "And if there is another thing we are sure of it's that Tsubasa is smitten absolutely."_

 _Umi narrowed her eyes at the bold claim a blush dusting her cheeks at the obvious implications. "Are you sure? Plus what if it isn't mutual."_

 _Erena spoke while she and Anju chuckled lightly. "We're French we know love, and we've known Tsubasa long enough to be able to read her…Honoka well she wears her heart on her face, it's obvious what she feels."_

 _Umi nodded. It was the case that the few times Honoka had talked to her the past few days it had only been about Tsubasa._

" _Well then let's hope that your jump training is successful before we go celebrating prematurely welcoming you into the battalion."_

Umi sighed.

 _Honoka's going to have her hands full when we get out of this._

* * *

 _40 Minutes later Outside Manneils._

Umi clenched her teeth; a loud 'bang' split the atmosphere from the other side of the tall hedge the section were crouched behind.

The air echoed with the near constant sound of machinegun fire and explosions tearing through the air, the leaves occasionally ripping and trees snapping around, thanks to rounds overshooting their targets on the other side of the foliage.

"So basically-" The section ducked lower in their crouching positions, the sound of the cannon interrupting Honoka's assessment, and temporarily drowning out the sounds of battle and deafening everyone.

Honoka cleared her throat loudly. "So as I was saying, he battalion are under attack by Jerry, and what's more is they've got tanks."

Umi strained to hear Honoka over the ringing in her ears seeing the look of grim frustration pass over the assembled girls, she raised her hand drawing the Ginger NCO's attention. "So what are we talking then Honoka? Panzer IVs? IIIs?"

"At least one Panther, that's what you can-" the interruption of their sergeant by another explosion was greeted once more by a collective flinch. "-Hear now. But me and Tsu-chan think there may be more on the other side of the village. What's more there seems to be at least one company possibly one and a half backing up the Panther."

Umi nodded, quietly noticing Kotori grit her teeth upon hearing the nickname Honoka had used.

"Is there any good news?" Nico asked sarcastically. A few nods of agreement passing over the squad.

Honoka smiled wagging her finger at the raven haired girl. "Nico-chan Nico-chan you shouldn't be so pessimistic…The Boche don't know that we're here for one, plus their infantry are all focussed on attacking the village meaning they're not facing our direction-" the shattering 75mm Gun of the Panther broke Honoka's explanation for the third time.

"Finally…" Tsubasa took up the explanation while Honoka glared at the hedge shooting daggers at the Panther that was hidden from view. "You lot have gotten set up and entrenched in the village meaning if we attacked we'd sandwich the Germans in between us and your defences."

"It's not a long distance as well, so here's the plan…" the girls all gathered in closer in their huddle. Honoka glanced over the hedgerow warily, as if waiting for the Panther to interrupt her. "We split up into our normal groups and punch through their lines to link up without troops. So Umi you take your fireteam I'll take mine, Tsu-chan you're in charge of the rest, we spread out and charge the enemy firing as we go."

"Who gets the Panther ~nya? Rin wants to play with the big cat!" Rin jumped up from her crouched position, enthusiastically waving her arms around volunteering for the job.

"Sorry Rin-chan, but I have a score to settle with that noisy brute." Honoka cracked her fingers fondling her remaining grenades in her webbing expectantly; the Panther fired again defiantly responding.

"Ok section move out! Good luck, not that we'll need it." The squad laughed at their leader confidence.

"ELI NOZOMI AND MAKI ON ME!" Umi yelled assembling her usual fireteam that were reunited in combat once again. Sometimes she'd rather be keeping an eye on Honoka, but being corporal meant she had to take her team and preserve the sections tactical flexibility.

The four girls scrambled up the embankment of the hedge while Honoka and Tsubasa barked short sharp orders in French and English to their teams.

Umi caught sight of Honoka signalling for Umi's team to move beyond the hedge quietly and hold their fire. She quickly nodded and relayed the sergeant's orders to her team in a loud whisper.

They picked their way through the thick undergrowth, crawling on their stomachs to minimise their profile, the sounds of battle reminding them that they didn't want to encounter any Germans or worse get shot by their own side.

The long grass beyond provided cover, but was just low enough for Umi to quickly assess the situation, by getting up onto one knee.

The Panther was firing into the village; the commander had wisely battened down the hatches considering how close he was to multiple trained markswomen.

 _That'll just make it easier for Honoka to do her bit._

The tank's gun flashed once again, the shell caved in a room of one of the village's houses, meaning Umi could now see the cloud of debris and dust that was flung up from it's unfortunate target, the cries suggesting it had been occupied.

The Germans were formed up behind a few trees and what meagre cover the ground offered, their attention on the defenders in front of them they were all too exposed from behind.

Umi ducked back below the sea of yellowing grass, she tapped Nozomi's foot, indicating that she wanted her and Eli to set up on a nearby tree stump. The Bluenette crawled forward keeping low while Maki followed her both were mere metres from the attacking Germans.

The rustling nearby suggested that Honoka's team was in a position that suited them already, working as fast as she did.

Umi dared a quick look above the grass again only to see Honoka had already climbed onto the tank and was Knocking on its cupola. An incredulous German commander popped his head out of the tank obviously expecting one of his men.

Instead Honoka opened up delivering a quick burst of her Sten to his face, Honoka dropped a grenade in to the tank, the commander slumping down lifeless along with it.

Honoka jumped off of the metal beast shortly before flames roared out of the hatch, and the tank tore itself to pieces. Jagged searing hot metal and supersonic gases and flame spewed out of the previously secure hull.

"Open Fire!" Umi yelled anxious to preserve the element of surprise. Nozomi's Bren thundered tearing pieces out of a nearby tree and despatching one whole section of Germans in a blaze of fire blood and splinters, bullets thudding into their bodies. The sickening fleshy 'thowcks' audible even over the noise of battle.

Umi fired a burst of her Sten, from her crouching position forcing down one group of Germans on the ground, trapping them between her and a few soldiers in the village.

Maki moved up taking her position next to Umi's the two fired into the grey clad forms in front of them in short bursts for a few more seconds before the medic frantically pointed to Umi's right

"Umi we have to move!" Umi glanced over her shoulder keeping her gun pointed at the danger in front of her.

The redhead was right; Honoka and the others were sprinting past the burning wreck of the Panther and in the distance she could make out Tsubasa's white jumper, gesturing and giving orders to the ragged line of women that ran by her.

"Nozomi! Move Up!" Umi tapped Maki's shoulder, running to the nearest tree flattening herself against it, Maki lying down using the roots as cover. She let off another burst from her Sub-machinegun to make sure that Nozomi's run wouldn't be interrupted, The intermittent chatter of both her's and Maki's fire keeping the enemy's heads from popping up

The blur of purple and blonde sped past the two girls providing covering fire vaulting one of the fallen tree trunks that littered the field, both of them barrelled into one of the housed Nozomi using her shoulder to break open one of the doors.

Both girls stopped Nozomi reopening fire to give Umi and Maki more cover.

The blue haired NCO kicked Maki forward with her leg, a silent signal for her to go first. She glanced at the redhead on the ground, their eyes meeting for a brief second, Maki's purple eyes questioning whether Umi would come with her. Umi mouthed her reply. "You go first." she intended to stay out, to make sure that the Medic got to safety before she would make her move.

Maki gave a small nod, before sprinting out firing her Sten to her side as she went. Casings flying everywhere, the diminutive gun spat death erratically across the grass. Bullets kicked up dirt tracing a path in the wood and the ground, sending down one unlucky soldier like a ton of bricks.

The Germans all sprinted moving like lizards zig zagging to make themselves a harder target, it looked like they were running away. Umi squinted at the Germans while they ran, one of them had a metal tube with a large cylindrical metal object on the end

 _A Panzerfaust!_

There was no time to waste, a few more seconds and the Germans would have the perfect shot on the house with her team in it.

Umi steeled herself, she slipped a grenade out of her pocket, and she breathed deeply. Dashing forward as soon as Maki had vaulted into a partially destroyed house Umi's lungs burned ad her legs slapped the ground unevenly throwing herself forward aiming for the limited cover afforded by a distant tree stump. She heard bullets pass overhead. The Germans had gotten bolder. Pulling the pin on the grenade, she slid behind the stump, throwing the metal object at the Germans. The explosion was accompanied by yells of pain and a spray of dirt and the mist of blood that was thrown skyward.

The poor hapless soldiers were tossed around like ragdolls in a gale as they were thrown clear into the air. Umi fired the remainder of her magazine into the few remaining soldiers. The heat emanating from her gun was immense, and nearly scalding but Umi ignored the feeling, simply continuing to fire forcing them to flee.

A rifle crack and the impact of a bullet into the stump drew Umi's attention to a squad of Germans advancing menacingly towards her firing the occasional shot in her direction. Their expressions made it clear that Umi should get to the relative safety of the village. She jumped over the stump and sprinted making a beeline for the house her comrades were housed in.

A few bullets impacted the wall sending stinging bits of masonry into her eyes while Umi jumped over it diving into the house, landing in a heap next to Maki.

"You guys took your time." Umi looked up to see a blonde man standing there tapping her foot impatiently.

"Jenkins was it?" she asked cautiously

"We got the job done though, and saved your skin while we were at it." Nozomi grinned like the Cheshire cat, leaning against the wall.

The lanky man bristled unable to rebut Nozomi's snarky comment. "Just get into the square!" he pointed out of the door frame that led into the village.

Umi sighed picking herself up off of the ground dusting off her uniform briefly before the team headed out into the square.

Gunfire echoed from nearly every house entering the shattered square. The purple haired figure of Fumiko greeted them, waving them in another direction, the backs of Honoka and her team, visible running to the opposite end of the village.

"Glad to see that they found you" she shouted as they jogged past her.

"Yeah! Most of us made it but we've got wounded, but they're with Tsubasa!"

"The resistance leader?" Fumiko asked quickly.

"Yeah that's her." Umi looked around the square, seeing Tsubasa's team emerge from one of the houses with their wounded.

"Lieutenant!" Hideko and Mika ran up to the officer, Hideko falling behind because of the heavy PIAT. Both girls tackled their Officer in a hug when they got to her. Fumiko looked briefly annoyed before embracing her comrades back.

"You guys made it…" The officer's focus snapped back to the new arrivals. "Leave the wounded and Follow the corporal, you guys are needed elsewhere!"

Umi saw Tsubasa nod taking her two comrades and leaving the rest with the lieutenant, jogging up behind Umi entering a long building at the end of the village that Honoka had just disappeared into.

"Ma'am!" Umi quickly saluted seeing the grey haired silhouette of their Captain,

"They found you then, we were starting to get worried, and instead it looks like you brought some friends." The mature officer gave the three French girls a slightly warm smile before turning back to Umi. "Follow your sergeant upstairs. They've got a Stug and a Panzer IV ut there and we've got no AT ammo left, form what I heard neither have you."

Umi nodded. "That's right Ma'am, how did you know?"

"I have my sources." Umi was surprised by the mischievous glint that appeared in the golden eyes of Kotori's mother. "The point was regardless of circumstances we have to hold this position, I've got word that reinforcements are on the way but they could be days or minutes. Until then hold the line girls!"

"Yes Ma'am!" the team shouted in unison, saluting crisply.

"Tsu-chan up here!" Umi saw the brunette bolt up the stairs at Honoka's face rounding the landing beckoning up her friends.

A tense silence descended, the girls joined with their sisters in arms.

The squad, now reunited lined up along a broken section of wall. Glaring out on the expanse of green in front of them at the two Tanks that sat there expectantly, the distinctive grey figures of infantry slowly pressed forward, using the armour of the tanks as cover.

"Sergeant Do we open fire?" Hanayo asked, finally breaking the tense silence

Honoka shook her head. "They'll blow the first muzzle flash they see out of here, I'd rather go home in one piece." The ginger girl pondered for a bit. "Kotori-chan, if you can hit the shell, down the muzzle of the gun when they've loaded that would destroy the tank right?"

Kotori thought for a second, aiming down her scope at the target gauging everything about the shot. "In theory yes…and I think can make the shot"

"Try the Stug…"

The reflection of light from the scope glowed in Kotori's eye, the section appeared to hold it's breath along with her, the lithe girl exhaled slowly, squeezing the trigger.

The rifle echoed with a sharp crack.

The low profile of the Stug, suddenly spat flame and metal, the bullet hitting it's mark, detonating the ammunition that was loaded in the barrel.

"Thanks Kotori-chan!" Honoka kissed the girl's forehead, just below her flaxen hair. Umi watched her cheeks turn deep red, she herself got a little flustered.

An explosion rocked the building, the German infantry scattering, a few bursts of sub-machinegun fire that followed being silenced by the roar of the Panzer IV's 75mm shell hitting the building.

"He won't miss twice." Honoka said grimly.

Umi gulped, her throat suddenly dry, she watched the tank make slight adjustments to it's aim.

 _Honoka's right_

Kotori's rifle snapped through the air once again, Umi saw the side of the turret spark with the impact of the round.

"I missed…" Kotori's voice was almost silent, the implications of her small failure larger than ever. The sniper gritted her teeth and cycled her bolt firing again at the tank, each bullet failing to hit its mark…

The blue haired corporal felt strangely calm, staring down the barrel of the gun that would bring her death. She glanced to her right, seeing Maki lying there, perhaps she regretted that Maki would die too, but at least they'd die together. Umi closed her eyes waiting for the last sound she might ever hear.

The roar of the Tank's gun echoed through the blankness that Umi could see

But something was up, seconds passed and Umi could still feel.

 _Shouldn't we be dead now?_

The bluenette slowly opened one eye, casting her eye over the battlefield in front of them. The Panzer IV was stationary, smoke poured out of it's engine and the crew had bailed out sprinting with their infantry away from the site.

The green box turret of a Cromwell tank poked out from the hedge behind it. The entire beast lurching forward, other shapes emerged from the trees behind it. Cheers echoing from other units, the recognisable shapes coming into view.

"Cromwells…a Churchill…" Umi muttered to herself, the realisation sank in across the section, a sigh of relief went up, as it always did after these situations, this wasn't the first and it wouldn't be the last.

Honoka jumped to her feet, she yelled "REINFORCEMENTS!". She waved at the commanders of the three tanks that had saved their lives, who had emerged from within their machines; a wide grin on her face.

The Tanks rumbled across the dirt finding the nearest stretch of road and rolled into the battered village, to the cheers of the Paras that were there.

* * *

Umi sighed, the endless stream of armour rolling through the town causing all sorts of noise, fumes and dust, tanks of all shapes and sizes came and went, Fireflys, Cromwells, the odd Churchill. The three vanguard tanks that had arrived from the 12th RTR were plonked in the centre of the square. Captain Minami was chatting with the young lieutenant who was their troop leader, a blonde girl with blue eyes who wore her hair in a French plait below her black beret. Her loader and gunner were sat on top talking with Eli and Nozomi, the one with orange hair being the quieter of the two. It was a bizarre scene in the midst of all the destruction; but then again 12th RTR were known as the tea ladies, each girl had a nickname of some kind of tea and all were obsessed with the stuff, the troop leader had even emerged with a cup of tea in hand.

Umi smiled seeing Rin Hanayo standing nervously to one side talking excitedly with one of the Cromwell commanders, who was about as lively as she was, her red hair flailing about whilethey made exaggerated hand gestures while swapping stories.

most of the tanks had infantry on top or walking by their side, all of whom looked a lot cleaner than they did. The Paras joked with the new arrivals, both sides throwing insults at each other, mostly the men who had arrived with the tanks.

"Oi Love! Bet you had an easy time of it! How 'bout I show you a real workout at my place!" Umi watched yet another guy take a shot a Nico, who was slumped against the café wall like Umi and most of the squad; the girl's diminutive size attracted more bastards than the norm.

Nico took a deep breath yelling "Piss off! You couldn't handle me, and neither could your sister last night!" the girls who were still awake tittered, the priceless look on the soldiers face realising he'd picked on the wrong girl.

 _Well all of us could kill him with our bare hands, so not like the same wouldn't apply to any of us._

The rumble of tank engines and the tramp of infantry gently lulled Umi to sleep, Maki slumped down next to her, mostly still ignoring the corporal for whatever reason it was, but when she fell asleep she fell against Umi's shoulder, her gentle breaths, her sweet smell even after all that had happened, her warmth all reassuring sensations to Umi while she gradually fell asleep.

Safe in the knowledge that for a while at least their job was mostly over. But the intensity of the war in Europe had just gone up a notch.

As Umi's main phase of Operation Overlord ended she realised something that regularly came to mind. The realisation that nothing would be left unscathed.

* * *

 **A/N: Again sorry for the late update.**

 **Soooo that was the Operation Overlord Arc, what did you all think? For those wondering there will be about 5 confirmed arcs with potential post-war stuff as well.**

 **Soon I'll be moving onto my Revolutionary TsubaHono so I'll update this and that on alternate weeks**

 **The results of the poll as to where I go next were literally a dead heat, so I'll go with my gut and say that after a few fluffy chapters of filler we're off to Arnhem the one we know**

 **Now all I need is all of your opinions on what revolutions you want. I NEED MY DATA FIX! either do the poll on my profile or leave a review.**

 **Before you all ask Sunshine Might feature and the 12th RTR will make another appearance Kudos for guessing who they are based off of. (those who guess right earn an insert into my story)**

 **On an unrelated note; Next Time: Who's ever heard of the Screaming eagles? :)**

 **Glossary:**

 **Panther Stug : late-war german medium tank, based in part off of experience with T-34s on the eastern front.** **Short for Sturmgeschutze III a german armoured assault gun/tank destroyer respectively**

 **Boche/Jerry: slang for Germans**

 **RTR: Acronym for Royal Tank Regiment.**


	13. Chapter 11: Omake

**A/N: So another week another chapter...How are we all enjoying Love Live Sunshine? I'm loving it! ChikaxRiko FTW! and that Dia beign a closet idol fan XD. So this chapter is a tribute to the new series, written after the first episode but just before the second so there wasn't (still isn't) much in the way of character development to go on. That is why this is basically a remake of LLS episode 1 in terms of most of the scenes and why it won't feature every character from Aquors.**

 **N.B: they're all part of the 101st.**

 **The girls of Muse Section return in two weeks time with a few filler chapters while I plan Operation Market Garden.**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 11-Omake: Aqua Squad

20th June 1944, US Army camp 'Uranohoshi', Near Carentan, Normandy.

Sergeant Chika Takami was bored. She'd been fighting on the frontlines for the two weeks, the 101st had been badly mauled over the course of the campaign but she'd somehow made it through the chaos of D-Day and the battles for Carentan and 'Bloody gulch'. When her request for leave went through she was ecstatic; especially considering that her oldest friend and squad mate Sgt Watanabe You would be joining her. But her celebration was premature, she wasn't allowed to go back to Britain for her week of leave: but Noooo she had to stay in Normandy in case of 'enemy operations' as they put it.

Chika Scowled she had no idea who 'they' were, but they were annoying. It was only the second day of her leave and she was already bored, the quartermaster had her helping with the assignment of new recruits and replacements, but that did little to alleviate her boredom. She turned up the radio hoping for something good like the Glenn Miller orchestra. Static filled her ears while she turned the tuning nob listening for the right frequency

" _-enth Army continues its almost unopposed progress up the Rhone valley."_ Chika grunted at the upper class British accent of the announcer _ugh more boring war news._ The boredom was taking its toll her normally happy and lively personality had become deadened after a few days of this, this…Limbo even when weeks of intense combat hadn't stopped it.

"Hey Chika~. Anything good on?" Chika glanced up to see a familiar pair of blue eyes framed by a Brown-ish bob of hair, a green forage cap sat on top, lilted at an obviously non regulation angle.

"Hey You. Nothing I'm afraid, just more news." She sighed. At least she had You, the girl had hoped to join the navy but they were still living in the Stone Age and refused to let women serve, so Chika's lifelong friend put her hopes of captaining a boat on hold and joined the airborne with her friend.

The radio droned on about allied victories and propaganda stories: there was the brave Russian soldier who had beaten three tanks with his bare hands, the group of resistance fighters who had aided the Brits in the initial stages of the invasion and were now undergoing training to become formally part of the Free French army. The two girls listened disinterested gossiping about the usual things: which officer was the worst, who was the best, which privates were a nightmare to deal with.

" _In other news Sgt Kousaka Honoka was today in London for her reception of the D.S.C_ _awarded for her actions under fire on the 6th and 7th of June, where she commanding a group of only twelve soldiers defeated an entire German company and successfully completing, this was in addition to her actions outside the village of Manneils."_

Chika sat bolt upright, the words floating lazily out of the radio, her eyes gleaming to the news _it's her_. "You turn that up!" Her old personality came back quite rapidly while she listened.

" _Sgt Kousaka is the commanding NCO of Muse Section, a unit of the British Parachute divisions which became famous after their exploits in the closing Stages of Operation Fustian. Holding a key point against overwhelming odds the nine girls who comprise the section are now famous for their prowess in combat and their impromptu concerts that they hold when on leave or not in combat. Asked about the secret to her success Sgt Kousaka had this to say-"_

Chika turned up the volume listening intently while the high female voice came onto the radio. The ginger girl closed her eyes, picturing the scene in her mind.

" _-Really it's just a case of we trust each other, we're allowed enough leeway in combat so that we can implement the strategies that we feel work best. Then of course there's the fact that we all love singing together and we get on really well."_ The radio sounded with the posh British announcer again _"The BBC has learned thanks to Captain Minami the Officer in command of Muse Section's parent battalion that the girls are accorded greater flexibility as a 'detached section' operating without officers and under the command of an NCO only, the first officers they have to answer to are only those at a battalion level."_

"You-chan that's it!" Chika jumped up from her seat clasping You's hands in her own staring into her eyes, a huge smile plastered on her face. "That's what we need to do to be like them! If we become a 'detached squad' then we can become like the girls of Muse, shining so brilliantly above everyone else."

Chika proceeded to wander around the tent fangirling to herself, leaving You watching incredulous. You smiled over how her friend really admired the British squad. She'd been obsessed with all of them since she heard about them six months ago, and had been trying to find a way to connect with them ever since, she'd even started extra training in her spare time to 'become as elite as muse'.

There was just one flaw in Chika's plan.

"Chika-chan…" You spoke up interrupting Chika's fangirling "…our squad were mostly wounded at Bloody Gulch, apart from Kanan who might be able to return, we're the only ones left."

"No problem! I thought of that. We'll just recruit some of the newbies; god knows there are a bunch of them!" Chika watched, You hum and think for a second.

"That's true we may be able to do that..."

"So…come ooon let's get recruiting." Chika ran up to You grabbing her by the hand before she dragged her out of the tent into the overcast Norman weather.

"Wait! Hang on, Chika-chan!"

* * *

You glanced over Chika's shoulder at the piece of paper in her hand, a list of all the currently unassigned recruits. "I'm pretty sure this is against regulations…"

That said; it wasn't like they had found any yet anyway, despite Chika standing on top of an excess crate shouting at the passing paratroopers.

"You-chan it's fine. Oh hang on…" Chika noticed a few other soldiers wandering down in between the various tents "NEW UNIT BEING FORMED! COME AND JOIN THE NEW UNIT!" the girls wandered off, Chika's advertising falling on deaf ears.

Chika sighed, slumping down onto her box, leaning against You. "Still no takers huh?" You asked; they had been going at this for the past hour.

 _I guess everyone is already assigned then._ Chika always knew it was a long shot but she wasn't about to give up yet

Suddenly she spied the perfect candidates walking near an apple tree about fifty metres away. One was a stunning girl with shoulder length brown hair, and warm amber eyes, there was a small smile on her face while she talked to the girl walking behind her. She exuded a soft glow as though she was bathed in a warm yellow light.

Her friend had red hair that poked out from under her helmet the double layers on each side suggested that she was wearing pigtails under it, the deep sea green of her eyes contrasted pleasantly with her hair.

But most important about both girls was their clothes; their boots were barrack room shiny, their uniforms a crisp green untainted by dirt and muck of battle, their helmets still had the sheen of newly made, as well as the lack of dents indicating they hadn't seen combat. The kitbags they carried were also of a clear green and new looking canvas. Everything about the two girls screamed that they were new replacements fresh from England possibly without a unit yet.

 _They're perfect!_

Chika jumped up leaving You's side in a flash as though she had teleported.

"Hey!" Chika appeared in front of the girls getting their attention "Do you want to join a new unit we're forming?"

"Zura?" the brown haired girl looked confused letting the word slip from her mouth, before covering it again quickly.

"Zura?" Chika questioned the word seeking deeper meaning.

"Oh nothing!" the girl's reply was muffled by her hands, yet failing to disguise her strong Bostonian accent.

"Don't worry I know you two are perfect."

"But…"

Chika noticed the redheaded girl staring at her intensely. "What about you? Are you interested?"

"Will we go on dangerous missions?" she asked enthusiastically.

"Not yet, we're really only starting out on this…" Chika pointed to You who had joined the girls at a more leisurely pace.

"You look super strong! I'm sure you'd be perfect to join my new squad!" she grabbed the girl's hand in a gesture of friendship.

"Eh?" The girl's face went pale blood draining from her face at the sudden contact.

"Zura." She heard the Bostonian girl say while she covered her ears.

"EEEEYAAAAHHHHGHAGH!" the girl turned red a banshee-like scream echoing around coming from the redhead's mouth. She drew back. All this startled Chika causing her to lose her balance falling back, onto the soft dirt.

"Ruby-chan is incredibly shy zura." The brown haired girl said over all the noise, the scream even causing the tree to rustle.

 _Wait_ is _that the screaming?_ Chika looked up at the tree in time to see a girl with blue hair fall out of the apple tree landing on her legs the painful jarring sound audible from where Chika lay sprawled on the floor. Scaring the redhead, apparently called Ruby behind the Bostonian.

"Ow my legs…" the slightly timid voice came from the tree dweller; her head still staring at the ground partly out of shock. A scoped Springfield rifle followed her down, landing on her head somehow miraculously staying put.

"Are you OK?" Chika asked concerned.

The girl's eyes flashed open, narrowing all signs of pain banished from them as they took on a weird semi-evil look. Almost like she was trying to be evil, but failing horribly. She started to laugh evilly, cackling like a witch, she looked up a wide bizarre smile spread across her face.

"Is this…earth?" she asked in a voice considerably deeper than the one she had been using before.

"So that's a no then…" Chika answered her own question.

"Which means that you lot are despicable lowly Humans." The girl flicked her hair making a peace sign with her hand and placing it by her eye, the movement finally causing the rifle to clatter to the ground.

"Never mind that are you Ok, what were you even doing in the tree anyway?" Chika tapped the girl's knee lightly.

"Ow…Of course they are this body is merely a vessel…" Chika smiled awkwardly, noting that the tree girl had ignored her second question

 _Maybe she was doing sniper training. That is a sniper rifle after all._

"For myself, Yohane, this body is my temporary form. Ooops I accidentally said my name, now you all know that I am the fallen angel Yohane-" the girl rambled on

"Yoshiko-chan?" the brown haired girl asked, moving in for a closer look. "It really _is_ you Yoshiko-chan. It's Hanamaru! I haven't seen you since middle school."

The Blue haired tree...Yohane…Yoshiko whatever she was looked stunned her mouth hanging open, struggling to form a response.

"Hey You?" Chika whispered to her friend while the Yoshiko girl stood temporarily disarmed. "How the hell did she pass the mental tests to qualify for the army? Let alone the airborne."

You shook her head "The division really must be scraping the bottom of the barrel if we're recruiting 'fallen angels now'.

"H-How dare you Human." The pitch of the girl's voice having increased considerably her identity having been revealed, her face one of confusion.

"Rock, paper scissors!" Hanamaru shook her fist initiating the game while Yohane joined in, Hanamaru's closed fist confronting Yoshiko's hand which had the index and middle fingers extended in a bizarre form of scissors. "The way you do scissors. It _is_ you Yoshiko-chan!"

"Don't call me Yoshiko! Got it? "The tree girl squeaked at the brown haired girl, her voice returning to a more natural pitch. "I'm Yohane! My name is Yohane!" the girl ran off protesting at the revelation of her real name.

"Oh Yoshiko-chan!" Hanamaru ran off after her erstwhile friend, the red headed ruby girl quickly following. The continuing argument over Yoshiko's name echoing while they ran off.

Both Chika and You stood, bewildered by the situation.

"I'm definitely going to recruit them one day!" Chika pumped her fist in determination, the new arrivals fading off into the distance. You laughed nervously

"Sergeant! What's this I hear about a new Unit?" the stern yell from behind her caused Chika to jump whirling around to be greeted by a woman with black hair and the same sea green eyes as Ruby. A mole sat just below her left eye giving her the air of an 18th century aristocrat. A single silver bar sat on the collar of her uniform denoting her rank.

"Lieutenant Kurosawa!" the two girls saluted fearfully not having noticed the officer.

"My office now!"

* * *

Chika blinked a few times, her eyes adjusting to the dim interior of the lieutenant's stuffy office. The space was positively Spartan; plain green canvas enveloped the area, a single lantern that currently lit up the tent hanging from a small metal hook looped into the ceiling. A plain wooden table was currently covered with maps and pieces of paperwork and functioned as a desk.

"Sit please." The lieutenant took off her forage cap and sat down on one of the two chairs in the tent, which were simply bits of wood and metal tubes providing no comfort whatsoever.

 _Chika sat on its hard, cold surface and groaned slightly at her discomfort_ , Chika thought, examining the room they were in. as well as keeping an eye on the officer's face to see how much trouble she was in, currently the woman who was sat opposite her looked calm and relaxed; but Chika wasn't sure if this wasn't the calm before the storm.

"So Sergeant…" the beginning of Lieutenant Kurosawa's interrogation shook Chika out of her daydreaming. "You want to form a…what was it again?"

"A detached squad, Ma'am!"

"A detached squad?" her face curved into a look of pure condescension.

"Yes Ma'am! I heard that that is how Muse squad operates! They don't answer to any officers in combat and are given free reign. I thought that the division could use a formation like that, so I was out gathering members." Chika barely noticed the almost imperceptible straightening of the officer's posture when she mentioned the British paras.

"So you were out gathering members without even informing me? Let alone receiving permission." The officer laced her fingers together resting her chin on them.

"Well when you put it like that…but wasn't creating trouble, just inviting people to join I thought if we got members I could show how popular the idea could be. I mean Muse squad are already really popular with the Brits!"

"Section." The instant response from the black haired officer startled Chika.

"I'm Sorry?"

"Muse _section_ not squad the brits call it a _section_. And what makes you think you could operate with the elite of the elite of the British Army?" Lieutenant Kurosawa stood up an angry passion burning in her green eyes. "I mean they held off two entire Battalions at Catania. TWO! Just _nine_ of them held off that number of people for over a day! And that's not even getting started on their record over the past few weeks!"

"Well…" Chika jumped when the lieutenant slammed her palm on the table causing it to rattle, the tent flap behind them rustled with You jumped back from her spying on them.

"Owwww" the riled officer breathed a curse shaking her hand to dispel the pain, causing Chika to giggle slightly. "You're in no position to be laughing! How many people do you even have? Two is what I've heard!"

"Well that's right we only have two…but that's why I was going out there looking for new members." Chika explained.

"It's not easy to run a detached squad you know, Muse can only do it because they're the best. As long as I am in command here you will not be given permission to form such a reckless experiment. The brass has had enough of that sort of thing recently." The anger in the girl standing in front of Chika ebbed out of her, replaced by something else.

"Lieutenant _please._ If we don't try we can never know if it would have succeeded, we will never know how far we could have gone, how much good we could do…" Chika Stood up, cradling her officer's hands gently.

The lieutenant allowed it for a brief second, before pulling back violently; she shook her head dismissing the feeling that had dominated for a few seconds. An evil smirk spread across her face. "You're right sergeant, it wouldn't be fair, and we won't know if we don't try."

Chika should've been happy that the girl in front of her was agreeing, but the light in her eyes, the smile on her face, and the tone of her voice all caused Chika to back up slightly. "I-I am? w-we won't?" She stuttered.

The officer placed her finger on her chin in a look of mock realisation. "Oh darn but there is one thing I'm concerned about…none of us have the right experience for that kind of thing. So I'll tell you what sergeant…let's make a deal."

"O-OK."

"I will not only agree to this venture but I will join the unit you form under your command if you meet two requirements. One. You come up with a name for the squad; we'll be in the media spotlight after all."

 _OK that, doesn't sound too hard, she might actually be reasonable about this._

"Two. You need to find someone with active combat experience prior to 1941 in this division."

Chika backed up a look of shock on her face. "N-N-Nineteen Forty One?! But that's impossible; we weren't even in the war until December of that year. And the division was only formed properly like it is now in 1942!"

Lieutenant Kurosawa crossed her arms. "So is that a no then?" she asked sweetly.

 _Hold on Chika, you can do this! If we want to shine above everyone else, if we want to create a unit to rival Muse we need to agree to this even if it seems impossible, we have to reach for our dreams or else we will never succeed!_ Chika's face steeled itself, her mouth a straight line of determination. "I agree" she held out her hand for the officer to shake.

Lieutenant Kurosawa's green eye's widened in surprise for a millisecond, before her confident look returned and she grasped the outstretched hand. "Then it's a deal!"

* * *

After seven hours of searching, asking questions, and trawling through available records even questioning the regimental commander while she ate her dinner, it did appear hopeless. Before she was thrown out of the officer's mess the kind hearted Colonel had answered her query with a resounding no.

Chika walked along the beaten and worn grass of one of the base's main thoroughfares, and sighed. At least the weather had cleared up no longer the dumpy overcast of earlier; the evening sky was lit up a brilliant orange and gold, weaving around the few clouds in the sky, in a rich tapestry of colour.

"Sorry Chika-chan! I should've stopped you, I knew how much Dia hated the idea but you looked so into it so I couldn't bring myself to tell you." You bowed her head in apology.

Chika smiled weakly at the usage of the lieutenant's first name, something the entire company was prone to. "It's fine You-chan, there's still a chance. I'll keep looking you head off to mess and grab some food. Ok?" Chika rested a comforting hand on her comrade's shoulder, seeing the girl sigh slightly, but she didn't protest merely heading off between the tents after extracting a promise that Chika would look after herself.

 _Perhaps You is right, I should give it a rest for today._ The ginger girl thought, opening the flap to her tent.

A light breeze caught her attention drawing her gaze to the small wood that stood a few metres from the green canvas of her home.

Something was there a figure that had just slipped into the trees heading through them with a clear sense of purpose. Chika couldn't make out much given the time of day and the trees obscuring her view but whatever it was had long flowing red hair.

 _A girl?_

The sergeant decided to follow her, to see who the mystery girl was, it was like she was being drawn to her, the red thread of fate appearing to be calling to her.

Chika pushed her way through the trees, emerging on the other side to see the girl standing on the edge of a low cliff basking in the light of the setting sun. Her slender figure silhouetted by the infinite combination of reds, yellows and brilliant oranges. Her hair blowing in the breeze like a banner, like a flag of old, blended perfectly into the scene.

Chika was struck by the beauty, a beauty that even the baggy uniform of dappled green and orangey brown couldn't hide, any more than the maroon beret on her head could keep her wild burgundy locks tamed and hidden from the wind that now gave them life.

The girl suddenly threw off her outer jacket, and ripped off her boots.

 _Wait what?_

She tore off her under shirt, and pulled off her trousers, finally taking the red felt of her beret and rolling it up into itself she placed it gently on the pile of clothing behind her. The mystery stripper stood at the edge of the cliff her toes curled over the sharp rock of the drop away. She breathed deeply.

 _She can't be_ Chika had heard of this before, soldiers who just couldn't take it anymore, the ones who snapped, who had had everything taken from them and couldn't bear another second of their wretched existence. The ones who ended it all

"Stop!" Chika propelled herself forward her forage cap falling off of her orange tresses. "Don't do it!"

"Wha-?" the girl turned around, her golden amber eyes, both charming and disarming.

Chika grabbed her waist trying to pull her away from the edge. "Don't do it you'll die!"

"What are you." The girl pulled back causing the two to sway dangerously on the edge. The girl's foot slipped over the rock, both of them falling into the empty air, looks of shock on both their faces.

"AAAHHHHH!" Their screams echoed bouncing off of the rocks around them.

A distant splash followed.

Chika opened her eyes expecting to be a splat on some flat piece of rock somewhere. Instead she was floating in the blue water, the darkness of its depths extending below her, the fading sunlight guiding her to the surface. Chika swam, kicking her legs and pushing the water seamlessly aside with her arms.

She gasped as she broke the surface swimming to the nearest shore. The girl was already sat on the muddy rocks surrounding the pool, shivering in her underwear. The cliff towered over the pool of slightly murky water, and the both of them.

"Are you Ok why would you do something like that?" the chill of the water still clinging to her heavy uniform caused Chika to shiver in the increasing cold of the evening.

"I wasn't suicidal; we're both lucky that that pool was deep enough to break our fall."

"Sorry about that." Chika looked at her feet forlornly for a few seconds. "Wait here a bit!" Chika dashed off into the woods surrounding the pool running to her tent she collected two towels as well as a spare jacket, she gave herself a brief wipe down to stop her hair dripping yet more cold water on her shoulders, before running back through the woods to find the girl's clothes. She scooped them up into her arms, making her way once more down the dangerous path.

"Here…" Chika placed the towel around the girl's shoulders placing her clothes on the rock by her.

"Thank you." The girl said softly.

"If you're not suicidal then what were you doing?"

"I wanted to feel the sky, to hear it…" the girl looked up at the darkening light, the clouds still burnished shades of gold and the colour of peaches a gentle breeze carrying her hair once more bringing life to it.

"Huh? Like the wind?"

"No…not quite I was in the 6th Airborne division after I'd been fighting in Africa since '40 I signed up with them."

"So you're a trooper too huh…" the red haired girl nodded.

"I loved the feeling that you got when you jumped. I did it thousands of times both in training and combat. Then one day I just couldn't…I couldn't throw myself out of the plane. They made me an instructor for a bit, but I still couldn't do it. I came here hoping that I'd be able to conquer my fear, I thought if I could recreate the feeling of falling through the clouds again, to hear the sound of the sky like I used to I could do it."

"I see…so where are you from then?" Chika saw the subject was making the girl uncomfortable so she tried to change it.

"Woking, in surrey."

"Isn't that the place in England with the Martians? You sure are a long way from home…you guys are supposed to be at the other end of the front."

The girl laughed. "Not many people these days know War of the Worlds."

"Wait do you know any girls in those detached sections?"

"Detached sections?"

"Yeah! I heard the Brits have loads of them!"

"Sorry I've not heard of them…"

"How can you not have? They go on dangerous missions independently, they form bonds closer than any other unit, and they're the best of the best! Like Muse section." Chika glared into the girls pools of honeyed amber that were her eyes, looking for a glimmer of recognition. _None_. She sighed.

"Muse are the best. Ever since I heard about them I've realised, they shine so _brightly_. They gleam above everyone else, beating the enemy against overwhelming odds; they make it through because of sheer tenacity, of sheer radiance. They brought me hope." Chika glanced at the sun through the trees, its light filtered through the trunks intensified briefly. "When I was a Private, I realised how ordinary I was, people told me the Airborne was the best, but really I looked around I saw I was no different from the rest of them. It wasn't a bad thing but I wished for something more. Then I saw them. Muse. I heard about their deeds about their achievements, but when I finally saw a picture of them." Chika unfolded a damp piece of paper in her breast pocket, showing it to the girl. "What do you think?"

The Girl looked at the picture, of Nine girls crowded together in front of some ruins, the girl with the sergeant's stripes beaming; she knelt down her arms outstretched encompassing the entire unit as if to say 'these are all my friend's'

"They look normal…" The girl blurted out, seeing Chika's enthusiasm dampen a bit she began to backtrack, only to be interrupted by the lively girl's voice.

That's right. They're normal and boring old normal me saw them and I realised I wanted to shine too, I wanted to bring the hope they brought to so many people." Chika sighed. "But it looks like that might not happen."

"Why not? The girl asked

"My CO won't let me, so she gave me nearly impossible conditions to meet, although one of them is easy, but even I can't think of a name at this point."

"Hmmmm" the girl hummed in acknowledgement "Well I'm sure you'll figure it out come hell or high water."

"Water…" Chika mused, a bolt of inspiration hitting her. "Aqua…Hey! That could actually work!"

"So what was the other condition?"

"It's not important…"

"Oh…Ok."

"We should probably head off it was nice seeing you…"

"Yeah you too." the girl gathered up her clothes letting the towel fall to the ground and she walked off into the woods.

Chika watched for a few minutes while her figure glided through the trees and disappeared. _Crap I should've got her name!_ Chika cursed her lack of foresight.

"Well time to head home." She muttered to herself, hurrying back to her tent before 'lights out' was imposed on the camp.

* * *

1100hrs June 21st 1944. 'Uranohoshi' Camp, Normandy.

"Alright listening!" Dia shouted at the assembled Platoon, small group of faces nearly unrecognisable to Chika thanks to the high proportion of replacements "We've been taking heavy losses recently, so it should come as no surprise that we need replacements. That said this one is a bit different so we're announcing her transfer to the platoon as a whole."

A murmur of nods and agreement swept the crowd. Although Chika wondered what made this new replacement so different.

"The circumstances surrounding her transfer are odd so we'll have her introduce herself." Dia pointed to the nearby tent, which the platoon was gathered around. "Please welcome to the squad Sergeant Sakurauchi Riko."

The figure that stepped out of the tent was familiar to Chika, her slender figure barely hidden by the baggy uniform, her long flowing auburn hair poured out of her helmet, a solid green hemisphere of metal, with a field dressing strapped to it. The uniform was no longer the dappled green and brown of yesterday, but rather the dull mottled khaki of the US Airborne that they all wore. Three upward facing chevrons on her arm were capped by a patch of a bald eagle.

 _It's that girl?! She transferred here?_ Chika stared incredulous at the sight before her; the mild mannered British girl from yesterday was now a member of her platoon, a member of the US airborne

"Nice to meet you all. My name as the lieutenant said is Sakurauchi Riko I hope to get along with you all." The girl beamed a smile while the assembled soldiers whispered over her pronunciation of the officer's rank. Chika hear mutters of 'damned limey' and 'why'd we need her?' coming from anonymous voices in front of her.

Riko's smile began to fade slightly, getting visibly more and more fake while the muttering continued.

 _Why are they being so meant to her? She'd got more combat experience than half of them! I mean yesterday she mentioned that she saw combat in…1940…_ the penny dropped for Chika.

"That's before 1941!" she yelled pushing her way to the front of the crowd, extending her hand to the bewildered Riko "It's a miracle! Riko-Chan please will you join me on the path to radiance?"

* * *

 **A/N: Ah terrible dialogue where would my stories be without you?**

 **So they will probably return at some point in the future. Definitely Market Garden, but I'm not sure when, it might be at the beginning, or near the end of the arc (Like A-RISE)**

 **And the results of the poll came back it was mostly the 1848 revolutions and so looking into it deeper I think that the French Revolutions of 1848 are going to be the best setting for the Revolutionary fic.**

 **Glossary:**

 **Forage Cap: a cloth undress cap worn by soldiers when off duty**

 **Kit for Aqua Squad: (didn't come up due to there being no combat)**

 **Chika: M1 Carbine**

 **Riko: Thompson Sub-Machine Gun**

 **You: M1 Garand**

 **Hanamaru: BAR**

 **Ruby: M1 Garand**

 **Yoshiko: Springfield Sniper rifle.**

 **Dia: M1 Carbine**

 **Kanan+ Mari: M1919A6 Browning LMG**

 **Squads: Assault: (Chika You Riko) Base of Fire team: (Yoshiko, Hanamaru, Ruby) MG team (Kanan Mari Dia) basically organised along the year lines.**


	14. Chapter 12

**A/N: And we're back, this time on the home front. So get your ration book ready and let's make do and mend! (home front jokes)**

 **And of course this is an UmiMaki fluffy chapter yay. I can tell you their relationship is really going to have things happen to it over these next two chapters.**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 12:

25th June 1944, Mayfair, London.

Umi groaned as she fell out of bed. She felt awful, her head felt like it had been carpet bombed repeatedly, and the resulting rubble had been destroyed by very noisy workers wielding sledgehammers who had then subsequently fired machineguns into the air in celebration. She could remember quite a lot about last night, and if the way her head ached and the way she wanted to kill herself were any indication alone, it was clear the squad had gone overboard. Again.

 _I am never drinking that much again_ Umi grumbled internally, although it occurred to her that that had been her promise to herself the past six nights _._ Her hangover wasn't the only problem either. Sleep had been fitful and unpleasant; if she hadn't been so drunk she would've certainly decided to change out of her uniform because last night was very humid. She still felt sweaty and clammy, the long strands of her blue hair having stuck themselves to her face, the folds of her duvet and blanket strewn across the fairly soft mattress.

The room was pitch black and sweltering. Her khaki fatigues still stiff with dried sweat and an odd smell hung in the air. She groped her way through the darkness induced by the blackout curtains flinging them open. Umi blinked a few times at the blinding light before her eyes adjusted, revealing a scene of another hazy summer's day above the hustle and bustle of the London streets below it.

Workers shuffled back and forth along the wide streets, and soldiers in jeeps travelled along the road, petrol rationing had put most civilian cars out of action for the duration. A few flags hung from the posh facades of the hotels and clubs that made up most of London's exclusive district. Some people were obviously making their way back from a night out and suffering the consequences others were meeting in the cafes and tearooms of the capital to discuss business, politics and the war. "Another normal day in the capital then." Umi muttered to herself

The corporal turned away from the window looking back at the remnants of last night. Her hotel room was a mess. There was at least three half full bottles of champagne on the floor, one leaking into the lush red carpet, a few bottles of whiskey and bourbon that had been treated with only slightly more care and innumerable empty and semi-full pint glasses. Her bed covers adorned the headboard and spilled onto the floor like a cascading avalanche, and at least half of her clothes had been pulled from the wardrobe and thrown onto the floor. Umi sighed clutching her head afterwards, a sharp pain splitting through her skull.

 _How did I make this much mess?_

She was torn between opening the window to dissipate the heat and suffering the intense noise of London on a weekend or turning on the fan which she knew would just circulate the hot air around. In the end she did neither and peeled off her uniform as she headed to the bathroom. A nice long shower was what she needed right now.

Unfortunately rationing meant that Umi wasn't allowed a nice long shower, she was lucky to have a shower at all to be honest the staff were only allowed to turn the water for the showers on twice a week. The bathroom was still as luxurious as it would have been pre-war with an elegant bath tub and a splendidly decorated shower head suspended above the bath. The only problem was the lack of water.

She knew it wouldn't last long but Umi was grateful however as the lukewarm water washed over body, washing away the grime and the sweat, bringing her the feeling of being clean again. The water cascading down her naked form brought back some of her senses, and eased the throbbing in her head slightly. She wondered where Kotori and Honoka had gone, the two girls had been sharing a room with her since HQ had only provided for three rooms at the hotel and they were absent. It did also explain how the room was so messy; the other two must've helped a considerable amount in trashing the place.

Umi slowly caressed the new round scar on her stomach. The remnant of the wound was a reminder of Normandy, a reminder of the treatment she had received, and who had given it to her. The corporal smiled, the stubborn face of that redhead flashing into her mind, along with the determination to find out what happened after her memory of that night. The wound had taken a while to heal of course and Maki had raised hell when she couldn't follow her patient to the nearest field hospital, she said that it was 'to keep an eye on the patient's recovery n-n-nothing more!' although Nico had coughed 'bullshit' loudly on hearing that.

In the end Maki had to remain at the front, albeit bitterly but still Umi was glad about how much her… Umi paused her reverie.

 _What is she to me? Calling her my friend isn't enough, she's more than that, so_ much _more … I-I'm not sure what I feel l for her not sure how to describe it_ Frustration boiled inside of Umi at her inability to quantify what she felt for the redhead. _I care for her as much as I do Honoka or Kotori or any of the others, but there is something else…_ Umi couldn't put her finger on it every time she was around the redhead she started having these thoughts, she noticed how soft her lips looked, how whenever Maki rested her head on her shoulder her hair looked so soft, and her heart raced. But when Maki was close, when she did one of a thousand things that made her cute or emphasised her human side beneath the ice that surrounded her, darker more insidious thoughts crept in too, the unmistakeable urge to simply devour the medic in her entirety rose so very, so dangerously, close to the surface, the things she wanted to do to the redhead, the things she wanted done to herself by the medic, sometimes shocked her in their graphicness. An animalistic side that she kept locked away so deep inside of herself, threatening to overpower her, thoughts she knew were evil, that her father had drilled into her were wrong.

"She's just a close friend." Umi whispered the phrase she repeated to herself when she was alone. It had to be true; it was the only possible explanation. But then why did that definition feel so inadequate? _Love?_ Umi grimaced. _That damned word again. It might seem like it at times,_ _but love? Impossible there's no space for that on the battlefield. Well I mean I do love Honoka and Kotori but not in that way! I suppose I love the others like that too. But romantic love? That has no place in war it gets you killed, or hurt, it puts too much risk on the table, and it tempts fate too much. Plus thinking about her that way is just Shameless! Too shameless! We've had too many close calls recently._ Umi thought back to the night when she and Maki had gotten lost, when without thinking she had just kissed her on impulse, it was like something possessed her at those times, and the times before then when she had kissed the redhead. Those times when she became so open, saying the forbidden thoughts that cluttered her head the ones that would make her father shudder. Umi blushed at the thought, her face now an unhealthy shade of red.

The abrupt end of the shower shocked Umi out of her train of thought. She blindly groped for a towel sighing, using the soft cotton to dry her skin. Umi muttered to herself "Besides even if we weren't at war, she's too good for me. I can't give her the love she needs" _the love she gives me_ the blue haired paratrooper always felt guilty when she saw those immense violet orbs staring into her, laden with hopes and dreams, an image of a future they shared together. An image she knew she couldn't provide. _She would probably be happier with someone like Rin or Nico anyway, someone prettier. It would be wrong of me to deprive her of the happiness that she needs, for me to take her and warp her like the evil person I am…_

Umi shook her head. _Ok maybe I'm not evil but even if we were together, I'm don't want her to grieve for too long if I die, or wait if I get injured._ Umi had seen what the scars of war did to a couple, the tales of some of the veterans of The great war in her village told her that much, that if she lost her legs, she would tie Maki down caring for her, put a stop to the girl's dreams. She had seen the widows' still grieving years afterwards.

 _It's better if she hates me than if I drag her down. Although ever since Normandy that hasn't been tricky, she's been getting slightly more distant. Not much but it's happened. Which is good I suppose._ But if that was the case then why did it hurt so much when Maki tried to avoid conversation about D-Day? Why did Umi feel unwanted when Maki excluded her?

Umi wrapped the towel around her body to preserve her modesty, before wandering out of the damp bathroom and over to the wardrobe. She silently thanked her lucky stars when she saw that hers was the only uniform not thrown on the floor and creased into oblivion, and it was her smart dress uniform.

Slipping on the long Khaki shirt and skirt and trying to clear her head Umi recalled the circumstances that led to them arriving here. HQ had awarded them all a week's leave thanks to the medal Honoka had been awarded outside Manneils. Honoka had insisted that the squad also be granted leave since they had also performed acts Honoka had thought worthy of decoration, 'and it wasn't fair if they weren't rewarded for it just because some officer wasn't there to witness it.' So she had managed to wrangle from HQ a week's leave for all of them and three rooms at the Ritz for the duration.

The section had responded to this chance for sleep and relaxation by promptly getting as drunk as they could. Every. Single. Night. The first night had been especially spectacular; Umi suspected that the clubs along The Strand wouldn't be the same again. Of course she'd tried to stop some of the more shameless acts in public but it was still very rowdy. They had all ended up sprawled in Nozomi Eli and Nico's room that night, the influence of the alcohol sending most of the squad to sleep right away.

Except that Umi couldn't sleep and apparently nor could Nozomi and Eli, the poor corporal turned red right now when she recalled the _extremely_ lewd sounds that had been happening less than a metre from her. Seeing the slight twisting of their forms in the pitch black Umi's mind filled in the rest. Umi tried to shut out the perverted sounds and the thoughts they brought with them, but despite their best attempts to be quiet the two women were not very good at it, and were very drunk both on each other and on the alcohol, so they had kept Umi up for a further three hours before they _finally_ finished.

Umi had not been pleased, and had given both girls a stern lecture the following morning, Eli had been more apologetic about the incident, but Nozomi was still Nozomi and had even tried flirting with Eli in a lecture about not flirting or doing perverted things with Eli. Sometimes the buxom machine gunner gave Umi as much of a headache as Honoka did.

Umi rubbed her temples the memory of the stress coming back to her. The other nights had followed a similar pattern to the first, go out get drunk and have fun and return for drinks in the hotel bar or head upstairs to bed, only the subsequent nights the girls had split up into their respective rooms.

Umi put on her Maroon beret and tied up her simple brown shoes before doing up the tie that hung around her neck. She opened the door and wrote a quick apology on the notepad to the poor cleaner who would have to clean this up.

Kotori and Honoka were obviously off somewhere together, ever since D-Day Kotori had been even more affectionate around Honoka and most likely she was dragging Honoka away to get breakfast. Umi glanced at her watch, and gasped her mouth hanging open in shock.

 _14:00! how can it be Two in the afternoon?! Damnit Honoka I told you to wake me up when you got up!_

Umi realised that no one would be available at this time all of the others had plans for today, either important meetings with high ranking officers or sightseeing around the capital. _All except_ _three people._

Umi found herself out side Maki, Rin and Hanayo's door taking a deep breath so that she didn't blush if she saw the redhead, Umi knocked twice.

No answer.

Umi knocked again, hearing scuffling on the other side, the door flew open and she jumped slightly. A ball of orange energy flew through the door, nearly colliding with the corporal standing outside.

"Who is it nya? Oh Umi-chan what is it you wanted?" chartreuse eyes narrowed slightly questioning Umi, the light nightgown that Rin was wearing indication that she'd either spent the day in bed or just woken up, Umi could never tell with the amount of energy Rin always had.

"Hey Rin, I was wondering if you three wanted to do anything this afternoon? Honoka and Kotori have that meeting at Whitehall and Eli Nozomi and Nico are off talking to the press on Fleet Street."

"Hmmm well Rin doesn't think we have to do anything, but she'll check with Kayo-chin."

"Rin who is it?" Umi heard Maki's tired sounding voice from inside the room drawing the cat's attention away from her.

"It's Umi-chan she wants to know if we want to go out with her!" Rin yelled back through the open door.

Maki hummed thoughtfully, her head appearing over Rin's shoulder. "Sounds like it could be fun; we're heading back tomorrow as well so this is our last chance"

"But Rin's not sure if me and Kayo-chin have plans, so Rin needs to check with her first." Rin bounded back into the room leaving Umi and Maki standing alone together in the empty hallway.

Umi's eyes cruised down Maki's form, finally noticing that she was only wearing a long white dress shirt, her long silky legs stretching out the bottom of the tattered and creased shirt. The top few buttons were undone to, exposing a part of Maki's creamy, inviting cleavage to Umi's hungry gaze. Maki gave a small yawn and sleepily rubbed her eye with the back of her hand.

 _So cute._ Was the only thought running through Umi's mind

The corporal shook her head slightly tearing her gaze from the radiant form in front of her. A blush covered her face, matching the hue of Maki's tousled hair. She looked at the floor quickly avoiding Maki's confused eyes and trying to hide the blush on her face. "M-M-M-Maki what are you wearing?"

"Hmmm? Oh this is what I wear to bed in the summer; it's more comforting than stuffy old pyjamas I just woke up after all."

"But how can you be out in public in something so…so…" Umi's eyes flashed up and down Maki's form once more, "S-S-Shameless?"

"Shameless?" Maki yawned again cocking her head to the side like a curious cat. The gesture sent Umi's mind into overdrive

 _So cute, so cute, so cute so, cute, so cute, so cute, so cute, so cute, so cute!_ Umi locked her eyes on the ground near Maki's feet screaming internally for what felt like an eternity. The only problem was that she then noticed how perfect, how adorable her bare feet were.

"Oi Umi, are you listening?" Maki's hand waved in front of her face brining Umi back to the world of the living.

Umi looked up at her face again shaken from her own internal madness. "Sorry I didn't quite hear that?"

Maki twirled her hair around her finger "God do you ever listen? I said what do you mean shameless? Plus we're not really in public either. I don't mind if it's you who sees me like this." Maki mumbled the last part, averting her gaze, her cheeks pinker than they were before.

"I-I-It's nothing.." Umi sighed defeated. Before her head throbbed again at the loud crash that came from inside Maki's room.

"Rin! Keep it down!" Maki shouted back, a quick apology was shot off by the cat-like girl. "Maki turned back to the uniformed girl in front of her. "Still hungover?"

"You're not?"

"I am a bit but not as bad as you are by the looks of things. Still I'd be surprised if any of us weren't hung over after last night."

Umi giggled "It was pretty crazy. Do you remember much about last night?"

"Surprisingly most of it. I remember that me and Nico got into a massive argument about…what was it again?" Maki asked slightly confused.

"I think it started about socks and then moved very rapidly onto the design details of heavy cruisers and before I knew you two were slinging insults at each other over the Ritz bar about god knows what."

"Yeah that was really fun." Maki giggled "Remember when Nico pushed me into that other officer, and he spilled his whiskey all over his dress uniform."

"And you told him to 'watch where he's going' and only then do you realise its Field Marshall Lord Alanbrooke."

"I'm still a little hazy on how exactly Honoka got us out of a court martial and discharge, I mean we pissed off the Chief of Imperial General Staff pretty badly!"

"I guess it's just her natural charisma, he did look like he was going to explode though didn't he?"

Maki giggled "I didn't actually know that Moustaches bristled that way!" Both girls laughed at the memory of the pure outrage on the Field Marshal's face until it was defused somehow by Honoka.

"And that wasn't even the end, Remember when Rin said she could climb Nelson's column?" Umi looked inside, hearing the murmur of conversation die down when Rin heard her name

"She got stuck at the top of one of the friezes. And was sat there shouting at us for fifteen minutes to get her down from up there."

"Rin could definitely do it nya! Rin was just a little too drunk to actually do it properly!" the exclamation from inside the room sounded slightly wounded.

"Come on Rin, don't go breaking your neck keeping promises you made when you were drunk. We'd all miss you. Right Umi?" Maki asked silently gesturing for her to follow her lead in comforting the prideful cat's feelings.

"Yeah Rin, you don't need to climb Nelson's column we know you are capable of much more impressive things than that!"

"Really?" Rin poked her head around the door frame sounding sceptical

"Of course." Both girls answered in unison and burst out laughing at the bemused reaction on Rin's face.

Rin's confusion quickly evaporated, turning instead into a mischievous smile "Well that's good because between you two and Rin; Rin doesn't think she could climb it either." Rin turned to face Umi, the mischievous smile on her face growing. "Sorry Umi-chan. Rin and Kayo-chin have plans after all so we can't go out with you. But we think that you and Maki-chan should have fun instead!"

"Huh?" it was Maki's turn to look confused. "But you said we weren't doing anything today?!"

"Well Rin and Kayo-chin were thinking and we came up with something to do. Besides doesn't Maki-chan like spending time with Umi-chan? You two were so lovey-dovey last night."

Maki blushed twirling her hair around her finger, muttering about 'it's not like she doesn't not like not spending time with Umi. But that's another thing!'

Umi blushed stammering before she narrowed her eyes at the comment while "W-W-What do you mean? I don't remember acting that shameless! And I'm pretty sure I can remember all of what happened last night."

Maki stopped her murmuring in infinite negatives. "Hmmm you're right I don't remember that either."

"Well it's true nya!" Rin looked offended at the questioning looks the two girls were giving her. "Rin remembers it clearly too! So does Kayo-chin. Umi-chan and Maki-chan were draped over one another all night whispering really loudly to each other about how cute you thought each other was. And when Rin got stu-…decided not to climb Nelson's column when Umi-chan and Maki-chan were worrying they were holding hands the entire time nya"!

The corporal and the medic stared, their faces perfect pictures of shock their jaws dropping to the floor. They remained motionless, silent for a few seconds while Rin glared at them defiantly.

Umi slowly closed her mouth. There was no point fighting the rising blush that now covered her face. She looked at the ground trying to hide the sheer embarrassment in her eyes. "Shameless." She whispered, to no one in particular.

"Now hang on a second!" Maki was on the verge of exploding with embarrassment and rage. "I want a second opinion! Hanayo is this true?" Maki shouted back into the room, the volume making the timid girl flinch slightly.

"Ummmm well…" the brunette paused carefully considering her next words. "I-I think it's true that You and Umi were behaving like a couple last night. From what I've seen you two have really good memories after you drink except when it involves you two being together, then you forget it completely, it's like the alcohol loosens you up."

The last sentence sparked a plan in Umi's mind, a plan to find out what Maki was keeping from her. _Alcohol loosens us up, so if I stay sober…_ a little

Maki lost the will to be outraged. Instead her face morphing to an even deeper shade of red, almost as scarlet as the face of Lord Alanbrooke's the night before.

Rin cleared her throat loudly. "So that's why me and Kayo-chin think that you two should spend some time together. Umi-chan and Maki-chan obviously make each other happy."

 _Not enough, I can't give her enough._ Umi banished the thought turning her attention back to the ginger tom-boy who was still talking.

"So Rin thinks they should spend time together. With that said…" Rin paused turning to Maki, coming out from her hiding spot behind the door, a khaki uniform in her arms. "Maki-chan Rin and Kayo-chin hereby banish you from our room until you've spent enough time with Umi-chan! Here is your uniform now have fun."

With that Rin shoved the clothes and shoes into Maki's arms and slammed the door with a loud bang that made both girls jump.

Maki blinked a few times "Huh?"

"What just happened?" Umi asked quietly

"I'm not sure…" Maki stared at the pile of clothing in her arms. "Hey Umi…" Maki tugged at Umi's sleeve grabbing her attention.

"What is it Maki?"

"Can I change in your room please? All I've got on now is this shirt…" Maki twirled her lock of hair furiously avoiding Umi's gaze.

"Sure it's this way. It might be a bit messy though, afterwards what do you want to do?" Umi smiled at the confused girl in front of her.

"Wait you're not going to lecture me about being shameless?"

"What do you mean? You're wearing your pyjamas and you got kicked out. It's not your fault." Umi grabbed Maki and started leading her by the wrist

"But Umi _all_ I've got on is this shirt." Maki's mumbled confession was barely audible to Umi's ears

 _Wait what does she mean by_ all? The penny dropped in Umi's mind, flooding it with unsavoury thoughts. Umi opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out. Darkness swirled at the sides of her vision and she felt increasingly dizzy

"Umi?" Maki could swear that she heard a hiss of steam come from Umi, followed by a high pitched whining sound, like a kettle.

Umi fainted less than a second later.

* * *

 _6 Hours Later_

Umi sighed, walking into a pub just off of Piccadilly, the light outside was fading and a blackout would soon be in force. Maki followed behind her, slumping into one of the sumptuous leather chairs that occupied the gloomy smoke filled room. Low wooden rafters jutted down from the ceiling and posters and bric-a-brac that didn't look like they'd been changed since Victoria's reign festooned the whitewashed walls.

The afternoon had not gone well. Umi had planned to take Maki shopping for some new clothes, but it was an hour before she came to again, coming face to face with a concerned Redhead fretting over her.

When they had both gotten out of the hotel at last, the quickly discovered that going clothes shopping was impossible. Rationing was in effect, and neither Umi nor Maki had enough coupons to buy what they wanted. Even when Umi tried pooling her coupons with Maki's they still couldn't afford the dress that the medic had her eyes on, much to Umi's dismay.

The streets of London were hot too; both girls became quite uncomfortably hot quickly, walking along the bomb-damaged streets. Eventually both girls had given up on trying for a successful trip and decided to head for a walk in Kensington common.

Even this was to prove to be a hard task. The Underground wasn't running and debris or closed streets due to unexploded bombs had blocked their path on more than one occasion, forcing them to take lengthy detours.

Twice they had both had to take cover due to air raid warning from Doodlebugs. The low buzzing of the flying bombs that the Nazis were now deploying on a helpless civilian populace causing fear and anxiety in all the civilians who heard it until it flew overhead indicating that they were safe. Even Umi felt apprehensive at times, and looking at Maki, she could tell that she felt the same way.

The common had been mildly relaxing, but it had been spoiled when a group of sailors on shore leave tried hitting on Maki, and wouldn't take no for an answer. Umi had been forced to step in yelling at the men to back off, and more embarrassingly she may have told them to 'keep their filthy paws away from my woman!'

Umi flushed red at the memory and at the looks she'd got from people also spending their Sunday in the park. Thankfully the populace had been on her side, and some well-placed jeers combined with the menacing aura the growing crowd gave off caused the sailors to beat a hasty retreat, without any violence, Umi wanted to die, although the look she got from Maki, made her heart do somersaults.

It had not been their finest afternoon together.

Dinner had been ok but nothing stellar, just a lot of awkward silence, the two girls kept interrupting each other when trying to start a conversation, a few stolen glances here and there. It had been a nice gesture on Rin's part but really it wasn't romantic day out she knew the lively ginger runner had in mind when she and Hanayo had pushed them into this. Although what she said about Maki making her happy, had been true…being around the cute redhead certainly made Umi feel so unbelievably happy.

The only problem was while she was happy right now Umi was not relaxed. _How can being around one person be so stressful?_ She asked herself.

"Hey Umi." Maki murmured settling into the chair she had chosen for the night. "If you're going to the bar can you get me a drink to please?"

Umi smiled back with the redhead yawning lethargically, the room had that effect on her when she was sober. "Sure what do you want?..." she replied before a thought struck her.

 _Wait this is the perfect time to get her drunk and then if what Hanayo and Rin said is true I might…just might…be able to find out what happened on D-Day._ The blank in her memory had haunted Umi for nearly a month now, and it was even more annoying when her friend wouldn't tell her what had happened, and had even run away to avoid talking to her.

"Anything is fine Umi." Maki closed her eyes resting her head back on the armchair.

Umi deftly weaved her way through the thickening crowd in the dim smoke filled room, avoiding revellers and casual drinkers alike, a few close calls almost resulted in a repeat of last night's accident.

Umi arrived at the crowded piece of blackened wood, aged by the time I had spent, by the weight of history and age on its shoulders, men and women of all stripes, officers and bank clerks, enlisted men and workers. Umi felt a lot more at home here than she would've at the bar at the Ritz, she had glanced in there earlier, and for one of the first times ever, felt pitifully small because of her rank, with only two chevrons on her arm. She would've felt out of place if she dragged Maki back there; in fact she didn't see anyone below the rank of colonel in there, and this time she didn't have Honoka urging her forward.

The buzz of conversation filled the air, with everything from the war to 'what Jeanine was wearing'. Umi subtly raised her hand at one of the bartenders, who nodded politely and continued to serve his current patron. Umi killed the short wait by analysing the spirits and lagers arrayed on the back wall, advertising the pubs wears to the world.

"What'll it be Gorgeous?" Umi glanced up to see a wiry young man, with a mess of brown hair and dull green eyes wiping a glass, asking her for her order.

Umi narrowed her eyes, unamused at the obvious attempt to flirt with her. "Shouldn't you be at the front? Not courting women who are spoken for."

The bartender blinked a few times surprised. "Wait what? Who? Huh?"

Umi leant on the bar, subtly gesturing at Maki. "That girl there and I are here together, so no thanks not tonight."

The bartender switched his gaze between the two, before a look of understanding snapped him out of his shock, tapping his nose in a knowing motion. "Ahhh I see so you and her…" the bartender whistled as though calling a horse, giving Umi a wink "no wonder you're not interested. And my sister fulfilled the national service quota; I work days at the factory"

Umi blushed. "N-N-No it's not like that. It's nothing t-t-that s-s-shameless." Umi spat the words out uncertainly "Anyway I'll have a whiskey on the rocks, and I know this will sound bizarre but do you have any grape juice?"

"Grape juice?" the bartender thought for a second. "Well with all the shortages we've got now I'm not sure, then again dad did mention that the government had issued alternative drinks to many pubs in London to try to get people to cut down on excess alcohol consumption."

"Why's that?"

"Well drunk workers aren't the most productive. Although I heard a rumour that they rushed this through parliament after some minister had his peaceful night at the club interrupted by some loud and drunk paratroopers, it was only about five days ago as well. Anyway I'll take a look down below." The bartender walked off out of sight.

Umi remained silent at the obvious implication of her and her friend's actions on the first night of leave. Nervously fiddling with her insignia that marked her as a member of the Airborne forces.

The bartender returned after a bit with a pint glass filled with a dark red liquid. "You're in luck we actually do have some grape juice, came in this morning you see."

"Ummm I hate to be a bother but I need it to be in a wine glass, but thanks for looking." The bartender looked disarmed by the apologetic smile that Umi gave, retrieving a wine glass while muttering to himself about someone called 'Les Dian' he poured the juice into the wine glass.

While he prepared a glass for Maki's whiskey Umi studied the glass in front of her. The illusion was complete. _Perfect it looks exactly like wine._

"Here…" the bartender lid a half full glass of whiskey over to Umi "that'll be three shillings and ten pence please."

"Here…" Umi rummaged in her pocket pulling out two, two shilling coins, the dull clink as the exchange occurred and Umi got back her change was barely audible in the crowded bar. "…Oh and before I forget…If me or my companion asks for wine, can you give me grape juice again." The bartender narrowed his eyes sceptically before agreeing.

Umi grabbed the two glasses and headed back to the two seats that Maki had reserved.

"Here I got you whiskey is that ok?" Umi handed Maki the glass of golden liquid over the top of her head, dangling it in front of her face

"It's fine. I thought you didn't like wine?" a look of confusion passing across her face.

 _Crap!_ Umi smiled trying to cover up her mistake. "I thought I'd give it a try you know?" Umi sat down in the chair next to Maki and watched anxiously, the girl took a sip of her whiskey.

"It's good, thanks Umi for getting this for me, next round's on me ok?"

Umi nodded sipping the sweet grape juice/wine.

The two girls passed the time drinking slowly and chatting about everything gossiping about people they knew, telling stories from their past. With each sip and each drink Umi noticed Maki, getting a little less coordinated, a little more open, a little less inhibited and that she'd slur her words more often.

"Hey Umi?" the blue haired corporal looked over to see Maki looking into her half full drink, an air of melancholy shyness and vulnerability surrounding her.

"What is it?" Umi leant forward seeing if Maki was actually sad or just shy.

"Have I ever told you that you're really pretty?" Maki hid her face in Umi's chest immediately after saying those words.

Umi's heartrate skyrocketed. "U-U-Uuuhh Maybe, I'm not sure?"

 _Is this what Hanayo means by Lovey-dovey?_

Maki sat up after she heard Umi's response and downed the rest of her drink. I'm going to get some more want some?"

Umi shook her head gesturing to wine glass in front of her "I-I-I-I'm g-good thanks Maki." It was all she could do to stop the internal screaming becoming external.

The redhead returned shortly afterwards with four whiskey glasses each full of the amber liquor. From the way she was swaying Maki was already very drunk. She downed three of the four glasses in front of her and sat staring at the wall in front of her for a good few minutes, her face as red as her hair, too red for it to be just from the alcohol.

Umi was becoming worried, she saw that Maki's eyes were blinking more obviously and it looked like she was muttering something to herself. "Maki are you-"

The redhead cut her off by turning to face her. Her violet eyes burned with sheer determination, slowly a goofy smile spread over Maki's face, and it almost sounded like she was laughing.

Maki reached her hand out to Umi's face caressing it clumsily. "M-M-Maki!" Umi screeched her voice jumping several octaves.

"Umi-chan's ssoooo pretty." Maki closed the distance between the two of them her drunken gaze peering into the bowels of Umi's soul

"M-Maki! What are you doing?!" Umi's face flushed bright red, Maki got closer and closer, Umi's breathing became shallower and shallower, and Maki brought her free hand up and around Umi's neck.

Umi couldn't take her eyes off of the girl in front of her, Her gentle soft skin unmarred by the dirt and grime of the battlefield looked like a sculptor had carved what he thought and angel should be with her soft cheek bones and her button nose. Her lips were tainted a rose pink by the blood flushing her face; their smooth curve appeared to be calling to Umi beckoning her in tempting her like some forbidden fruit tainted pink by the alcohol . The intense imperial purple of her eyes burned like a potassium flame that Umi remembered as a child; one that had enraptured her, and that she knew was too dangerous to keep a hold of for any length of time, that would explode and kill her with only the slightest provocation. Maki's hair was slightly dishevelled from being under a beret all day, and strands of it poked out from all over her head, making her even cuter. _How is it that she is this attractive?_

Umi felt Maki take a hold of her hand lacing their fingers together, causing some stammering sounds to come out of her mouth.

Maki silenced her further protests with a clumsy finger pressed against her lips. "Shhhhh Umi-chan is so cute when she's flustered, but right now just let it happen, like we did in Normandy." Her voice was laced with a sultry depth that made her even more irresistible.

That last phrase brought Umi's mind back to her objective. "What do you mean? What did we do in Normandy?"

Maki backed up a quizzical look on her face, which was no longer millimetres from Umi's "You don't remember?"

Umi shook her head.

Maki giggled, draping her arm over Umi's shoulder, she pulled the blue haired girl in close. Umi could feel her hot breath tickling her ear. "We had sex." She slurred giggling afterwards with that sonorous laugh of hers.

Umi tensed up, her heart pounded like a machinegun in her chest, all the blood in her body rushed to her head. "W-W-We had se-se-" Umi couldn't say it.

Maki purred, "Do you want me to spell it out for you? We had S-E-X. We made love together Umi. Although it would be more accurate to say that you made love to me…"

Umi jolted. _What?_ Her insides were torn between the elation she felt and the crushing shame. All sorts of images flashed through Umi's mind, of Maki's voice calling for her, of her naked body writhing beneath her, _are these memories or fantasies?_

It didn't matter now. Umi could feel the urges she repressed around the girl in front of her rising to the surface, Maki's body suddenly felt a lot hotter, or was it Umi who was overheating? The redhead's body suddenly became a magnet for Umi's eyes, her gaze wandering all over her form imagining what lay beneath the dull khaki, that was designed to be unflattering, but somehow clung to Maki's form, emphasising every delectable curve.

Maki giggled again, her peals of laughter heavenly in Umi's ear "The things you could do with that mouth of yours were absolutely… _shameless."_ Maki's voice dripped with lust as she breathed the last word into her companion's ear.

Umi shuddered with pleasure, feeling the heat spread in her core, she let out a tortured sigh. _No this is wrong, we can't do this! She kept it a secret for a reason! She has to feel that we can't work either, that this is just…_ Umi's mind kept wandering back to that damned word as she tried to come up with an alternative. _This is just…lust that's all it isn't love at all._ Why did it hurt to think that?

Umi gently pushed the drunken medic off of herself earning a hurt mewl in response. Umi placed both of her hands on Maki's shoulders forcing the younger girl to look her in the eye. "Maki, why didn't you tell me this? You had known for a month, so why?"

Maki averted her gaze, a sullen look replacing the, overpowering lust of a minute before. "I was scared…" she replied meekly.

"Scared?"

"I was scared that if you found out, you think that I was too 'shameless', that I was some kind of whore. I took advantage of you Umi! You were drunk! Hurt! I should've stopped you but I couldn't help myself…I was too weak, I was scared that if you found out it'd change the way you saw me, I thought you see a weak, shameless harlot. That you'd leave me…" Maki lowered her voice tears pricking the corners of her eyes.

Umi stared at the girl shocked at the revelation, _Maki was scared that I'd leave her…_ guilt washed over Umi when she realised that for most of the day she'd been thinking of doing exactly that. The blue haired girl repeated her outburst over and over in her head, each time she realised that Maki was none of the things she thought that Umi would see her as, she was strong, faithful, beautiful. Umi's heart twisted into knots when she realised. "Shameless." She whispered under her breath absentmindedly.

Maki sat up straighter, her face contorted into a frown. "I see" she said softly.

 _Did she hear me?_ Umi kicked herself internally for her faux-pas but before she could apologise. "Umi I-I-I… I need to go outside for a bit…" Maki got up and snatched up her headdress, before dashing out into the darkness of the blacked-out street, her eyes pregnant with tears, her voice heavy with emotion, cracking under the strain when she spoke.

"What have I done?" she muttered to herself. _I need to talk to her, this can't go on like this. One of us could get hurt or even worse killed if we take this into action. Even if we were…together…it wouldn't stop._ The logical side of Umi's brain had made up its mind. Her heart hadn't though, and was still screaming like it had been stabbed repeatedly.

Umi walked to into the darkness expecting to see Maki crouched over the pavement, ill or depressed or maybe both. "Maki?" she asked to the darkness moving away from the noise of the pub. "Maki? Where are yo-Mmphh!"

Something soft and panting pressed themselves against Umi's lips two hands grabbing her by her lapels and shoving her against the wall of the pub. Her amber eyes widened in shock at what happened.

The lips moved against her own slowly sensually, coaxing her into the embrace of the mystery person. Umi closed her eyes savouring the sweet slightly tangy taste of tomatoes that she knew anywhere. Only one word was on her mind; _Maki._ Umi kissed back her lips crashing against those of her lover's in a chaotic embrace. A thousand suns exploded in Umi's mind, their intense heat melting away the outside world until it was just her and the redhead in front of her. Umi caressed her tear stained cheek before she buried her hand in Maki's unruly red tresses, her beret falling to the ground with a soft 'flop' that neither girl cared enough to register.

Maki grabbed more and more of Umi's shirt balling up the fabric into her fists, like she could try to close their emotional distance if only she was close enough to her body in the real world. It was as though literal sparks flew between their lips with every little touch it sent off a thousand nerves to the brain, garbling what they felt, it was a sensation that they shouldn't have been able to experience, but they were, every touch was euphoric.

Umi mover her hand stroking the side of Maki's waist gently, curling up and around pulling her closer by the small of her back.

The sounds of her desperate kissing were all that Umi could hear, the soft whimpers that came from her mouth, the soft cries of an emotional Maki across from her, all echoed around in her head, a glorious orchestra of her lover and her locked in an embrace.

Umi wished that the moment could continue forever, no war, no complicated emotions, and no responsibility. Just her and Maki together.

But alas humans are fragile creatures that need air to breath, the two girls panting heavily, gulping down the precious air into their lungs.

Umi relaxed her grip on Maki, her arms falling by her sides, while Maki kept her shirt clenched in her fists. Blood rushed to Umi's face when she realised what they had done in public, she was suddenly very glad of the blackout that was in effect.

Maki kept her gaze fixed on Umi's chest, hiding her face from Umi. "Umi I need to tell you this." Maki whispered softly.

"W-What is it?"

"I can't keep putting this off anymore!" Maki said more to herself apparently than to Umi. Maki looked up, an infinite fire of determination burning in her penetrating Violet eyes. She opened her mouth her voice failing her for a second "Umi I-I'm in love with you!" Maki shook her head. "No love isn't a strong enough word. I-I can't live without you Umi, you brought so much to me, so much colour into my life that it's like before I met you I lived in a world of grey. The kiss was a way to get you to understand my feelings."

Maki took a deep breath preparing herself for what came next "You complete me Sonoda Umi! Do you feel the same way?" her tear stained eyes burned with hope, a hope of a future where she and Umi were together.

Umi blinked. _No this can't be happening; we're not going to work! We're too emotional we argue a lot too!_ Umi kept listing off reasons why they couldn't be together in her head, the internal argument raged, yet for every reason that she could come up with for not being with Maki she always came up with the perfect counter-argument. _But's it's Maki._ Umi exhaled slowly steadying herself trying to calm her heart rate. Only one thought ran through her mind.

 _I love her._

Umi met Maki's gaze. The redhead was still looking at her, despite her usual determination she looked like she had been stripped bare, her heart exposed and on a plate for Umi to receive. Umi gently took Maki's hands by the wrists lowering them by her side in a caring gesture, the tension flowing out of Maki's body _I love her._

"M-Maki we're not going to work out." _Wait what?!_

Umi watched the hope in the eyes of the girl she loved die, replaced by a brief moment of shock, then the tension returning to her body, accompanied by a cold look of resignation in her eyes.

 _What happened I didn't mean to say that!_ "I mean we're just too different you and I." _I don't care about that!_ "And you and I argue too much." _That's what makes being around her fun!_ Tears began streaming down Umi's eyes as she tried in vain, screaming internally at herself to stop talking, helpless to stop herself destroying the dreams of the girl in front of her, causing the silent weeping, the tears thudding the floor, adding impact to each terrible word that came from Umi's mouth. "Plus its wartime, we'd be tempting fate."

"But I don't care about that!" Maki shouted.

"But I do! I can't make you wait, or put your dreams on hold if I got crippled!" _She wouldn't care you idiot!_ "You'd be better off with someone who can make you happy, who fits you better like Nico or Rin someone who loves you like I don't" _Liar! Liar! Liar! Liar! LIAR!_ "I can't return your feelings Maki. I'm sorry." _Maki don't believe her! Please see that she's lying! I love you please understand, this isn't what I wanted! I don't know why I'm saying this…_

Maki broke out of Umi's grip. Her face and clothes stained by tears "What is this? I don't understand you!" Maki yelled at her before she ran away into the darkness. Leaving a broken Umi behind her.

Umi stared at the figure of the girl she loved faded into the blackness of her surroundings "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so so so sorry Maki." She mumbled her apology over and over again into the frigid night air. She shook her head. "I really am an evil person." She said realising that her one chance to be honest with the girl had been shattered by the real dark thoughts that she held, by the real evil inside of her planted there years ago. By the months of denial, by the superficial excuses that she had used to hide her true feelings, and now as Sonoda Umi slumped against the wall onto the cold, damp pavement, she looked up at the night sky, knowing that there was no way that she could fix this, that their relationship was shattered beyond repair.

And she wept.

* * *

 **A/N: Don't hate me**


	15. Chapter 13

**A/N: So welcome back sorry again for chapter twelve this chapter will be from Rin's perspective because I finally worked up the courage to try and write her.**

 **So what few of you exist after chapter twelve enjoy.**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 13

July 15th 1944 Allied Army base 'Otonokizaka' North of Caen, Normandy.

Rin let the breeze tug at her short orange hair, surveying the array of green tents and vehicles sat peacefully beneath the grey sky before her, the calm of the early summer morning only broken by the occasional fighter bomber flying overhead, or a brief artillery barrage fired from the base's battery of 25 pounder guns. But despite it all, the calming summer breeze, the near silence, Rin wasn't calm, not calm at all.

For one there was nothing interesting to do in the rear areas, the fact that they were only there for two days didn't matter, it was still dull with nothing to climb, or no open spaces where she could run without having to go through the barriers surrounding the camp. It was like a prison.

But more than that, the air felt toxic, not literally of course, but Rin couldn't put her finger on it, the atmosphere felt off. Her friends weren't acting right, Kotori was more outspoken than usual, loudly declaring her affections for their sergeant at every opportunity, in ever more elaborate ways, currently she was stewing in the Redcaps' tent for forging the signature of the chief quartermaster. Rin still didn't get how exactly she'd moved all those shells secretly and then detonated them in a nearby so the craters formed the words 'I love you Honoka' she doubted that anyone did, suffice to say the resident Royal Artillery officer was not pleased.

Honoka meanwhile looked like she was trying her best to not die from the stress that had obviously built with every time she was called into Captain Minami's office over Kotori's latest stunt or she was mobbed by journalists and war correspondents seeking a story after every patrol. Rin noticed that the only times that she was truly relaxed was when Kotori simply held her in her tent in the evening cuddling her gently or when she was writing those letters to someone like she did all the time; a warm smile on her face whispering something incoherent. Letters that Rin saw Kotori tear up or burn at every opportunity she thought she wasn't being watched.

That wasn't the worst part. A cloud hung over the section ever since they had come back from leave, ever since Maki had run back to their room in London tears streaming down her face, and refused to talk about what had happened, she just kept calling herself 'stupid' and sobbing other words of self-hatred over and over again. The Medic had appeared to return to normal the next day but, Rin might've been slow, but she wasn't entirely stupid, she noticed something was up.

 _It's like a part of Maki-chan has died…she won't even talk to Umi-chan now…_

Rin frowned at the thought. The redhead wouldn't even acknowledge their second in command by her first name, simply calling her 'Corporal Sonoda'. _They were so close before…_ Rin could see Maki was suffering so she made it her and Hanayo's mission to cheer her up, playing games, hugging her when she appeared on the verge of randomly bursting out crying, despite her protests. It had almost become a routine, Maki weeping in her arms while the ginger stroked the back of her head whispering soothing things into her ear.

And Umi was just the same, almost dead inside. Rin had overheard Honoka and Kotori talking about how the usually stoic girl cried herself to sleep every night, mumbling incoherent words, apologising to Maki repeatedly. Rin didn't understand why she would do that, but she felt that if either of them were ready to talk about it to her they would, until then she would wait.

On top of all this her best friend had gone missing today, hence why Rin was sat on top of the Camp's flagpole. "Kayo-chin where are you?" Rin mumbled to herself, she had scanned the camp for any visible signs of the brunette, or places where she might be, places with large amounts of Rice, one of those shows by one of the starlets her and Nico-chan were obsessed with, but the camp had none of those so Rin was at a loss as to where she should look.

"Oi Get down from there."

"Nya!" Rin nearly fell off of the flagpole in shock. She'd been found out; Rin looked down to see a blustery fat Sergeant Major wagging his finger at her, and yelling about regulations again.

Rin never understood the adults' obsession with rules and restrictions, and the army had so many of them, it _They're so boring nya. It's a good thing Honoka-chan doesn't pay attention to them._

Rin adjusted her webbing before jumping down from the top of the flagpole she was perched on, doing a somersault in mid-air before landing on her feet as she always did. Despite the acrobatic skill shown, the impact of the ground rushing up to meet her legs still sent a jarring pain through her legs, shaking her skeleton "Ow…that hurt nya."

"I don't care!" the Sergeant Major grabbed her roughly by the shoulder "You're coming with me to see the MPs."

Rin shook her head violently, pulling herself free from his surprisingly weak grip. "No! Rin has to find Kayo-chin!"

"Like hell you are!" The whale of a man dived after her tryin to tackle her to the ground.

"Nya!" Rin jumped out of the way and began running away through the various tents.

"Oi! Come back here you little shit!" Rin saw the fat blob get up and start sprinting after her, his face red with exertion after only a few paces.

Rin smirked as she slowed her pace to a jog, waiting until the her pursuer had nearly caught her again, then using her bursts of speed to keep herself just out of his reach.

"Wait…up…you…." He was so out of breath it was hilarious. The Sergeant Major slumped to his knees sweat pouring off of his forehead turning the green of his khaki uniform a dark black. he was panting heavily as though he'd run a marathon, not less than a mile.

Rin giggled at the sight, jogging on the spot just out of his reach. "What's wrong nya? Can't keep up with Rin?"

Rage filled the man's eyes "I'll…have…your hide…you-"he collapsed mid-sentence falling to the ground like a sack of potatoes. Causing Rin to stop jogging and laugh raucously.

Rin stopped when his form stirred, realising that she'd be in big trouble if he ever regained consciousness. She dashed away through the camp again, keeping a look out for Hanayo. She frowned looking at the endless rows of tents.

 _Green canvas, Green canvas, and more green canvas! Why can't the camp be more exciting colours nya? It's not like the enemy actually have an air force these days anyway so we can make it look pretty now._

Rin kept checking every tent when she passed it the tedium of looking seeping into her being, she yawned "Where is sh-"

"Someone Help Me!" the light and airy voice twisted into a cry of help, pierced through Rin's mind, only one person sounded like that.

"Kayo-chin?!" _Where did that come from?_ Rin looked around her before running through the camp again at full speed _She has to be nearby…_

"Please some-" this time Hanayo's cry was muffled halfway through. _Behind!_ Rin whirled around vaulting guy-ropes and stumbling around a corner.

"I told you to keep quiet! Now we're going to have to hurt you." Rin heard a gruff voice coming from around the corner. She stopped herself just short of skittering around the corner flattening herself against the tent, peering around it.

She saw three men surrounding Hanayo, One of them had his hand clamped over her mouth as he held the petite girl from behind his arm squeezing around her neck, an ugly scar marring his face, his nose looked like it had been smashed in repeatedly, greasy black hair poked out from beneath his helmet.

The other two men were standing there their fists clenched in anger. They both had their backs to Rin, one of them stood almost hunched over he was small and rubbed his hands together constantly, the epitome of the expression weaselly. The other stood taller, straighter, an air of superiority about him, unlike the other two he wore a peaked cap and kept his well-manicured hands behind his back, occasionally running them through the greying hair on the side of his head. On his lapels he wore two pips. _An officer?!_ Rin was shocked that he'd let this sort of thing happen.

Rin couldn't see much else but she could see Hanayo struggling meekly against the much taller bigger with the squashed face, the beginnings of tears in Hanayo's purple eyes sparkled emphasising one thing.

Hanayo was terrified.

"Sir don't hit 'er in the face, I like the look at summit pretty when I'm havin' me fun." The weael one said rubbing his hands with glee.

"Now, Now, Greg I though we agreed that I get first go, after all this harlot insulted me! I think it only right that I get to have my _fun_ first." The officer's posh voice fell on nearly deaf ears. Ears deafened by primal anger

 _Fun? FUN! They think this is Fun? They're hurting Kayo-chin!_ Rin had chosen her target, and planned out her attack long before this but that phrase sent rage coursing through her system.

The officer slugged Hanayo in the stomach, causing her to double up in pain, her cry stifled by the hand clamped over her mouth. Tears rained down on the grass beneath her.

Rin snapped "You leave Kayo-chin ALONE!" her voice broke from the volume of her yelling, the men all jumped at hearing the shout, Rin took her opportunity, and sprinted towards them as fast as she could, she pushed off of the ground launching herself into the air her leg extended in a flying kick.

Her foot connected with the squashed face of the man holding back Hanayo with a sickening crack of bone snapping, a second kick to his neck, sapped her momentum allowing her to land with cat-like grace on her feet.

The man staggered back Blood pouring from his nose; Hanayo took the opportunity to stamp on his foot, splaying her arms breaking free from his grip while she transformed the stagger into a fall.

Rin stared at the two men who looked stunned as their companion propped himself up, clearly in great pain his moans more than emphasising that fact.

"Rin said leave Kayo-chin _alone!_ " the shout transformed into a low growl this time.

The officer blinked, before regaining his composure. "Or what? I'll have you know that whore smashed into me. She deserved some punishment. I mean she had the nerve to sign up in the first place. You too in fact. You should start running, because when I catch you I'll make sure you remember your place is in the home! I'll have you both on a charge for this!" the ranting didn't appear to stop, blending into one monotonous sound as foam appeared at the side of the man's mouth.

Rin clenched her hand around the knife on her belt. Her fringe hiding her eyes in shadow, the cool feel of metal in her hand making the other girl to stir from her slumber in Rin's head, the girl who relished in using cold steel, who adored the feel of blood on her hands, and the look of despair and fear when she drove the knife into flesh, the girl who loved the 'squelch' of organs whenever she disembowelled someone. The girl who had been driven insane by war and who could do what Rin could not. Take a human life.

"No." Rin said quietly, trying to restrain the other girl inside her "You are the ones who had better run." Her frigid voice sending shivers down the spine of

The weasel man, seeing the look intent roiling in her Chartreuse eyes gently tugged at the officer's sleeve. "Er Sir. I fink we'd better do what she says."

The officer looked down, as though the mere suggestion offended him. "What are you talking about man? They're just girls! What can they do? They shouldn't have been allowed to be soldiers in the first place! They should know their place! Subservient, designed to serve the superior sex!" he glared at the two girls standing in front of him, directing his last remarks at them.

Rin sighed. "Looks like Rin'll have to teach you two a lesson then nya~." She stopped holding back the other girl and whipped out the steel blade soundlessly from its sheath. She pushed her weight forward, sliding down into a fighting stance, coiling the energy in her front leg like a spring. The other girl smiled at being let free, before she propelled herself with a superhuman speed, the air rushed in her ears for a brief second, the wind singing over the blade's edge as the other girl brought it up and stabbed it forward.

She halted mere millimetres from the officer, her blade kept in her outstretched arm, held well past his face.

"What the-" the odious man felt warm blood cascade down his cheek from the deep cut that Rin's blade had left there.

"You'd better Run nya~" the other girl said sweetly. "She doesn't want me to kill you, but she can't control me forever." She whispered into his ear.

"What?" the man stepped back a look of shock on his face as he touched the fresh blood pouring out of the wound "How dare you! How dare y-" his screams were cut off quickly

The other girl brought her knee up into his stomach with immense force, she brought the pommel of her blade down onto the back of the head of the doubled over officer, turning it about she stabbed twice.

Blood sprang from two more cuts on his shoulders, his epaulets rank and all fell to the ground. Rin kicked the officer to the ground smiling one more time as she stabbed into his arm leaving the knife embedded there.

The other girl took a step back a smile on her face, like an artist admiring her work, relishing in the cries of pain watching the blood spurting everywhere out of his arm, coating everything in it's delicious red hue.

 _That's enough nya~. anymore will kill him._ Rin ordered the other girl from the depths of her mind, pulling on her to return.

The other girl stepped back looking the officer in the face, licking the blood off of her hand like a cat. "You're lucky she's calling me back, and I want to go, you really aren't worth the trouble. But I trust we've learnt our lesson nya?"

The officer's face twisted in pain as the other girl ripped out the knife from his arm violently, desperately clutching at his wound trying to stem the bleeding. A scrabble of dirt heralding the fact that the other men had already run away

Rin returned, sheathing the knife and walking back to a grateful Hanayo. "Kayo-chin are you all right?"

Hanayo hugged Rin unexpectedly "Don't do that again please Rin." Hanayo begged her as she absorbed Rin in her embrace.

"Huh?"

"Don't let her out again, the others will find out. And you'll be sent home. I don't like her Rin I don't like the other girl, and you know it. She scares me Rin. She's not the Rin-Chan I know, she's not the Rin-Chan I love."

"But they were hurting you Kayo-chin!" Rin pouted

"Please Rin…do it for me...please."

Ron looked into her friend's pleading eyes. "Rin doesn't really understand, but Rin won't let her out as often." Rin felt the petite brunette smile as she held her closer stroking her soft fluffy hair. _Just like Kayo-chin_ Rin giggled at the thought.

"You're the only Rin-chan I need." she mumbled into her friend.

"There you two are!" the two girls broke their embrace whirling on the balls of their feet to see a pair of angry looking pigtails poked around the corner.

"Nico-chan!" Rin ran out catching the petite soldier in her tackle hug.

"What the hell are you two doing? We're supposed to be out on the front-lines now! Everyone's looking for you."

"We're really really sorry" Hanayo bowed apologising profusely.

"We were teaching some people a lesson weren't we Kayo-chin." Hanayo nodded in response.

Nico studied the face of the ginger girl, noticing the flecks of blood on it. "Remind me never to take up classes with you guys then."

* * *

 _Three hours later, Allied front-line 5 miles west of Manneils, Normandy._

"Booored!" Rin groaned resting her face on the cool soil of the parapet. Her Sten rested next to her head, pointing out at where the enemy lines supposedly were, although Rin could only see a field and another _goddamned_ hedge at the end of it.

"Rin's sick of looking at the same piece of farmland! There aren't even any Germans out there nya~ Why are we even here?" Rin shifted her feet, kicking at the loose soil at the bottom of their slit trench.

The section was keeping watch over the same bit of territory they had been before they went to the camp in the rear areas, Rin had stood for hours in the same slit-trench, camping out at night in the same barn that she had beforehand. She missed the days when the high command would pick them for exciting dangerous missions. Now because they were 'reliable' they were stuck here doing boring defensive work on an 'exposed sector of the line'.

Nico stirred beside her, rubbing the bridge of her nose slowly. "I told you a thousand times you stupid cat! There could be no-one or an entire division behind there" Nico pointed furiously at the hedge at the end of their field; "just because you can't see them doesn't mean they aren't there! That's why we're here!"

"Nico-chan's mean!" Rin pouted again.

"Come on Rin just stick it out." Hanayo patted her shoulder softly. "You can Do your best for us…" she gestured to Nico and Maki, who both sighed in exasperation. Rin didn't exactly feel over the moon, but there was a little more motivation than before.

"Ok Kayo-chin" Rin said "but Nico-Chan why are we here again?"

Nico headbutted the parapet before turning on Rin "Oh for God's sake! You stupid-"

"Lay off of her Nico!" Maki yelled in their direction.

"Oh like you can talk…I know you pick on her just as much as I do!"

"Really?! I happen to have heard of such a thing as moderation. Plus I don't think I've ever needlessly yelled at her as much as you do!"

Nico snorted "Needless? And the entire way here you were having a go at her even the truck driver asked you to stop."

"I was worried about her, and since when have you _ever_ passed up on the opportunity to yell at people?"

"I hardly ever do that! Name three people I yell at regularly!"

"Me, Rin, Nozomi." Maki fired off the names as soon as the question exited Nico's mouth.

"That woman deserves it! Using me to satisfy her perverted sexual desires…" Nico shivered at the thought of Nozomi's creeping hands.

"You know she doesn't mean it." Maki sighed. "Honestly you can be so bitter at times."

The black haired girl scoffed. " _Me_ bitter, who's the one that is so bitter she got dropped at the side of the road by her precious Umi?"

Rin and Hanayo winced; no reply could be heard from Maki's end of the trench Rin saw the redhead's helmet slowly disappear beneath the parapet, as though she was sinking to the floor.

Nico started backpedalling "O-O-Of course what I meant was-" Rin shook her head lightly.

"Let Rin and Kayo-chin do this…" she whispered.

Rin stumbled over the broken earth to where Maki was curled up, her face buried into her knees tears streaming down her creamy skin, cutting through the dirt and grime that covered her face.

"Maki-chan" she said softly.

"Rin?" Maki looked up

Rin crouched down in front of her friend. "Nico-chan didn't mean it…"

Maki snivelled "I know that doesn't mean she didn't say anything true though…" Maki's voice was unsteady, on the verge of breaking, just like Maki was.

Rin shook her head violently. "Rin doesn't really understand what went on between you two, but Maki-chan should know this…" Rin took a deep breath. "Rin loves the way Maki-chan was before, you were so cool and beautiful, and you'd always help Rin with problems that Rin didn't get…And Maki-chan is still all of those things right now. What happened between you and Umi-chan doesn't change who you are Maki-chan." Rin placed a comforting hand on Maki's shoulder, her eyes softening as the redhead's tears stopped flowing, she wiped away some of the dirt and tears on her face with her thumb, her hand lingering after the caress for a few seconds.

Maki stared into Rin's eyes, her gaze possessing an edge which Rin couldn't quite place. "Rin…" she said quietly. The ginger haired girl appeared to exude light, warmth, all the things Maki was craving. "Maybe Umi was right…" her voice became soft like feathers in Ron's ears "Maybe I'd be better off with you. You've been there for me throughout this..." Maki closed her eyes, blushing, she leant forwards slightly.

Ron stared at her friend's eyes, have was a rabbit caught in the headlights of Maki's seductive stare frozen to the sport until her face was millimetres from Maki's before she realised what was happening.

"Maki-mmphh" Maki's lips smashed into Rin's own, Rin squirmed trying to push the redhead away from her, her lungs screaming, her very being telling her that this was wrong. "NYA!" She yelled, finally managing to dislodge the bewildered medic.

Maki's back collided with the dirt wall of their trench with a 'thud'. A few particles of soil rained down on them from the impact. A melancholy smile spread across Maki's face. "of course…" she whispered, her voice barely audible.

"Maki-chan what was that?!" Rin yelled a fierce blush on her face, her body tense and bristling.

"I-I-I'm not sure…I don't know anything now" Maki looked down at her feet the earlier depression returning.

Rin softened, "Rin still doesn't know what happened with Umi-chan." She lowered her voice. "Rin can't really help you or Umi-chan if she doesn't know what happened."

"Help…Umi? " Maki raised her head confusion, sadness rejection band a thousand other emotions swimming in her eyes .

Rin nodded "Rin heard from, Honoka and Kotori that Umi-chan has spent the past few weeks like you, crying herself to sleep at night, hardly eating, Kotori-chan even said it was as though she had lost the will to live…" Rin saw Maki's eyes widen in fear. "…Rin thinks so too. She heard Umi-chan apologising to you over and over and over, when she thought that no one was listening, like a prayer."

Multiple emotions flashed past Maki's eyes, fear, hope, dread, pain and happiness. "But she said she didn't love me! She said that we shouldn't be together! So why would she cry over this? I don't understand any of this" Maki ripped off her helmet, scrunching her scarlet hair up in her fists in frustration.

"Maki-chan…" Rin paused looking at the conflicted girl. "What happened?"

"…"

"Oh just tell her you stubborn Tsundere!"

"Nico-chan!" Hanayo hissed.

"What?" Nico looked at Hanayo rapidly drawing her hand over her throat telling her to stop talking.

"We need to-"

"It's fine…" Maki sighed, pulling her legs in closer to her face, "…You'll all find out eventually, you'll all find out what an idiot I am."

Nico nodded grimly, hearing the self loathing practically dripping from every syllable of Maki's speech.

Maki sighed again. "I-I-I got drunk, on leave, the last night, me and Umi had spent the day out together, it wasn't much but just being around her made me feel happy." The melancholy smile appeared on Maki's face again as she recalled the events of that night. A blush dusted her cheeks like a cherry blossom petals scattered across a sheet, "I ki-ki" the word stuck in Maki's throat the blush on her face deepened further from a light pink to become the same colour as their berets.. "I kissed Umi, then I told her what I feel…I mean what I felt for her. And she shot me down…badly." Silent tears poured down Maki's face.

The trio looked on silent, at the broken wreck of emotions before them.

Maki wiped away a few of her tears "Look at me. How pathetic am I? You all know what I felt and I can't stop being embarrassed, I know that she dosesn't love me but I can't stop loving her so much. It just hurts so, so much. All I want is for it to stop."

Rin drew Maki in for a hug warily, wrapping her arms around her as though the girl was made of glass. "Rin doesn't think that's true Maki-chan, she thinks that Umi-chan still loves you…"

"But how? She told me we shouldn't be together, she told me she didn't feel the same way."

"Could you see her face when she did?"

"W-Well no, it was dark and the blackout was in effect, so I couldn't see it _that_ clearly".

"Rin thinks it doesn't matter what she said. Umi-chan is hurting too, if she didn't love Maki-chan would she be apologising to you still?"

"But she said that she didn't love me!"

Rin lifted Maki's chin so that her gaze met those smashed violet orbs "What did you feel?"

"Huh?"

"You always told Rin that actions speak louder than words, when you kissed Umi-chan what did it feel to you like she felt?"

Maki averted her gaze, avoiding Rin's penetrating eyes, her blush deepening fuller than Rin had ever seen it. "It felt like she was just as desperate as I was, like she wanted me just as much as I wanted her, like she was just as scared as I was…" Maki reminisced her voice trailing off into the past "…In those few minutes I was so happy, I thought all my feelings had been returned…"

"Rin thinks you both love each other, that you always will, but you two just need to accept it, to tell the other what you feel. Right now what's stopping you from talking to her?"

Maki opened her mouth to answer before Nico interrupted her "The cat has a point Maki, you so clearly still love each other, but you're both too stubborn to admit it, Umi more so for whatever reason. I don't think you need to get back together with her like Rin does, but you should at least talk to her about this. I mean you haven't spoken a word to her outside of responding to orders in three weeks you stupid Tsundere Tomato!"

Maki remained silent, the tears having stopped.

Hanayo stepped forward her hand clasped over her heart "Whatever you do Maki-chan we'll support you, but you and Umi need to talk this out, if only to get some closure."

"You guys…" Maki breathed.

"Now go on, go to her she's in the barn, I'll keep watch over this field it's a dead sector anyway. Go on! Shoo shoo!" Nico waved her hands at the still stationary redhead.

"But I…"

"Come oooon nya~ let's go Maki-chan! Kayo-chin too!" Rin lifted her up half pulling half dragging her out of the trench.

Hanayo pointed at herself slightly confused "Huh Me?" her confusion dying with Rin's enthusiastic nodding. "Nico-chan will you be ok?" she asked, stepping out of the trench.

"I know the drill. Just come running if you hear any shooting. Now why are you all still here? Shoo! Get going!" She waved her hands again shooing them away.

* * *

The barn was a short trek away; the group mostly travelled in silence, each girl stewing in her own thoughts. The only noise being the rustle of the wind in the trees and the twittering of birds.

"There it is nya~" Rin pointed at the grey slate roof that had been partially caved in by the elements, or artillery, no one really knew. The rest of the building rapidly came into view; the yellowish-grey granite that made up the walls was crumbling in areas, but sturdy in others. Still the weathered old doors were still standing, and slightly ajar.

"I'm not sure about this…" Maki whispered to Rin, the three girls crouching down near just next to the greying door.

"It'll be fine nya~ but Maki-chan needs to do this alone." Rin smiled, giving her a friendly push in the direction of the barn.

"I-I-I guess…" Maki took a deep breath before standing up. "Wish me luck."

"You won't need it, Rin's positive that Umi-chan will respond."

"You're a good friend Rin…" Maki looked at the lively girl, who had pushed her here her gaze softened, a warmth returning that Rin hadn't seen in weeks.

Maki pushed open the barn door, Rin and Hanayo poking their heads around it, Rin crouching over the smaller brunette.

The blue haired corporal was studying something laid out on a hay bale that was turned on its side. She responded to the door opening without even looking up "For the last time Kotori, I really think that Honoka will respond badly to being called 'your wom-"

 _So Umi-chan has had visitors before?_

"Umi…" Maki stood in the door her fists clenched, her hair hiding her eyes beneath its shadow.

Umi looked up, stunned at the new presence in her barn, she took a step back like Maki had physically pushed her. "M-Maki?"

Maki strode into the barn, Rin could see her confidence waver with ever step, but the stubborn redhead kept walking forward. "Umi I need to talk to you."

Umi looked away from Maki's gaze. Rin couldn't see her eyes but she could easily picture them, burning with passion and desire, like the sun.

"W-What about? I-I-If it's about your next assignment I really think Honoka's the one you should go to, or maybe-"

"Umi!" Maki yelled, slamming her hands down on the hay in front of Umi. "I need to talk to _you_ …"

Rin saw the fear in Umi's amber eyes the hurt, the way that her expression of shock concealed one of pain.

Maki wiped her eyes "Umi, I know how you've been feeling the past few weeks, I heard from the others…Umi I still love you." Maki walked around the hay bale so she was standing only centimetres from the blue haired girl.

Those last words caused a jolt in Umi, she turned away, trying to distance herself from the girl in front of her, from her confession. But then why for Rin did it look like her every step hurt.

"Maki…we we can't be together, I told you this already…" Tears began falling down Umi's face, her voice cracking with every word. "…I-I don't love you."

The words shocked Maki, her eyes widening, for a moment Rin worried that she would accept the words at face value, that she wouldn't see how much pain Umi was in. but the redhead balled up her fists, closing the distance between her and the other girl again. "Stop lying to me…" Maki turned Umi around, she leant down ever so slightly, gripping Umi by her lapels so that she couldn't turn away again.

"Maki I-I-I'm not…" Umi's shaky voice, her body language everything about her screamed that she was being dishonest about her feelings. The bluenette took a deep breath trying to steady herself, her hands unconsciously, looping themselves around Maki's body. "I'm not ly-"

Maki silenced her with a kiss, Umi's eyes widened her face flared scarlet. Her shock quickly fading with each caress from Maki's gentle fingers and she relaxed into her arms. Their lips were locked in an embrace so tight, so hungry that Rin knew in that moment she was right about Umi; they kissed again and again, their mouths craving each-other's taste over and over, barely stopping for breath. Their hands wandering, pulling each other closer

Rin looked away, embarrassed, even the squelching sounds of their kiss were audible from here, "Hey Kayo-chin…" she whispered before seeing that Hanayo was utterly engrossed in the sight before her. Rin sat back waiting for the sounds to stop. It wasn't too long before the sounds subsided.

She poked her head back around the barn door, the two lovers staring into each other's eyes, panting uncontrollably, each face as red as the other, their grips on each other was white-knuckled tight as though they were afraid to let go, that they would lose the other if they did.

"Umi…" Maki breathed "…I know you still love me."

Umi shook her head, her resolve shaken but not yet broken. "I don-" Maki pressed her lips to hers once again. This time Rin could see Umi's resolve break, it was a crack that Rin could swear that she heard. Umi began crying, the tears gushing down her face.

"Do you love me?" Maki asked her eyes searching for an answer; tears rolling down her cheeks, tears that flowed unstoppable like a torrent. She stroked the side of Umi's face, Her hand wet from the tears flowing down her lover's cheek.

Umi opened her mouth to speak. She hesitated briefly before whispering something that Rin couldn't hear.

"What was that?" Maki asked, apparently she couldn't hear it as well.

"Of course I do." Umi repeated louder. "Of course I love you."

"Then why were you still lying to me?"

Umi looked away, ashamed, averting her gaze, she broke free from Maki's hold, gentle sobs rocking her body"Because all I do is hurt you! You are too good for me, I can't give you the happiness you deserve." Umi sobbed "All I have ever brought you is pain. I thought in these past few weeks that if I could make you hate me then you could be free to find someone you deserve, someone who can tell you that they love you without having to break up with you and cry themselves to sleep at night for three weeks first. Who can give you the affection you want without screaming that it's 'shamess' someone who you can treasure without always questioning her feelings." Umi turned back to face Maki. "If I am sad for my entire life, then it's fine as long as you get the happiness that you deserve Maki, the happiness I can never give you." Umi hid her head in her arms.

"Umi…" Maki covered her hand with her mouth, looking over the weeping girl in front of her, tears running down her own face. both girls were now emotional wrecks. "You have no idea…" Maki gripped Umi's shoulder, bringing up her hand. She slapped Umi hard across the cheek. Even the sound alone made Rin jolt.

Umi looked up shocked at the sudden pain on her cheek.

"Don't you dare think about yourself that way again!" Maki yelled at her. "You are worth so much more than that. Can't you see that the only way you can make me happy is by staying with me?"

"But-"

"No buts when I said I love you, that doesn't describe it!" Maki pulled Umi in close again into her embrace. "I already told you didn't I? That you complete me, that without you Umi I am nothing! Haven't you felt it these past few weeks? I know you love me, and I love you too Umi, so much it hurts. It hurts to see you like this!"

Maki kissed away the tears pouring down in torrents on her lover's cheeks. "It hurts when I'm not around you! It hurts Umi it hurts so much…and the only thing that stops me hurting is you…you Umi...are my everything, my cure."

"But all I'll do is hurt you Maki! You have to leave me behind." Umi weakly tried to protest, but Rin could see she was on the verge of giving in.

Maki stared down the sobbing wreck in front of her, she placed her lips gently on Umi's soaked skin once more "I don't care, I won't ever leave you, no matter how Manny Times thou hurt me. Because nothing hurts more than a world where you aren't by my side. The only way you can hurt me is by not being with me. I love you Umi." Maki stared her lover in the face, her dazzling smile framed by shining rivers of tears.

Umi looked surprised, confused, scared all at once, and finally, _finally_ she smiled, a smile so wide it looked like her face would split. "I love you too Maki."

Rin felt a tear fall to the ground, an uncontrollable smile on her face as well. She watched as Umi closed her eyes, leaning forward she captured Maki's lips in a kiss again.

"Come on Kayo-chin, Rin thinks we should give them some privacy."

"Awww but, but." Rin tapped her friend's shoulder silencing her protests. "Alright Rin-chan lets go.

* * *

 _July 18th Unnamed Barn serving as, Muse section billet, 5 miles west of Manneils Normandy_.

"Hey Rin" Rin turned around catching sight of a flustered Honoka running up to her

"What is it nya?" Rin looked puzzled

"Have you seen Umi and Maki I haven't seen them in three days."

"Uhhhh" _Rin probably shouldn't mention those noises she hears and the strands of red and blue hair she found on the upper levels of the barn._ "Nope haven't seen them." Rin smiled innocently

"Are you sure? Because I'm pretty sure I've heard them calling out each-other's names on the upper level of the barn."

 _Bollocks_ "Nope Rin hasn't seen them nya."

"Okay, well I believe you Rin." Honoka picked up her Sten and began walking away, "Oh one other thing, can you tell them when they're finished 'making up' up there, that three days is way too long for anyone, and that I've let it slide for now." She smiled a knowing smirk. "They've got one extra day and that's all."

Rin smiled "Rin'll let them know Honoka-chan."

"Good to know. see you around."

"Did you two hear that nya?"

A topless Maki appeared over the top of the makeshift balcony, using hay to cover her modesty, flushed red either from her recent exertion or the embarrassment she felt. "Yeah we heard, now if you don't mind you're interrupting something."

"MAKI!" Rin heard a screech from an out of sight Umi and Maki flung her head around "I thought you said they couldn't hear us!" Umi's squeals reached fever pitch and Rin could only assume from the half-guilty half-terrified expression on Maki's face that Umi was quite angry.

Maki began twirling a lock of her hair like her life depended it. "A-A-H well you see Umi I said it might be more private up here b-but I did-"

"You promised! To think that they heard us doing those _things_ together it's just, just. Shameless!"

"Now calm down Umi..." Maki held up her hands trying to fend off a very angry Umi. "...Ron a little help here please."

"Rin'll see you tomorrow then nya~"

"No wait Rin-Chan! Ah Umi!" Maki's voice jumped several octaves and small giggle slipped out of Rin's mouth.

The ginger girl smiled listening while Maki's protests were drowned out once more by a now familiar chorus of squelching kisses and clipped moans. Rin walked out of the barn, happy that those two had finally made up and gotten together.

* * *

 **A/N: So it finally happened. Umi and Maki are together and its about bloody time too I was originally going to have them broken up over several chapters. Maybe even until the battle of the bulge but I couldn't do it so they kind of hijacked Rin's chapter instead**

 **By the way I am on holiday now so updates will depend on my access to technology and WiFi sorry about that.**

 **Don't forget to leave a review.**

 **Glossary**

 **MP: Military police designed to keep troops in line known in the British Army as Redcaps due to their uniforms**

 **The other girl: (not really a military term but oh well) Rin and Hanayo's name for Rin's other personality.**


	16. Chapter 14

**A/N: Sorry for getting this up so late and keeping you all waiting, a bunch of things happened, First I was on holiday, then a severe case of writers block and procrastination happened, I'll try and get Market garden started before the 17th of September though so expect at least a few chapters in this week (hopefully, don't hold me to that.)**

* * *

Muse Section Chapter 14

25th August 1944, Allied army camp Otonokizaka, Near Sword beach, Normandy.

Kotori watched as the flames lapped their way around the yellowed paper in front of her. Despite the fact that the flames were only small it gave her a warm feeling inside to watch the paper be consumed, to watch those words disappear and know they would never reach the eyes intended for them.

Honoka had written to _that girl_ again. This kept happening, she would always just keep sending letters to her, no matter how obvious it was that Honoka was _hers_! _Why_ couldn't she just leave her and Honoka alone? They were happy before she showed up, with that stupid flirtatious smile of hers and her stupid accent! Kotori had assumed it was a temporary arrangement, but to her horror That French girl Tsubasa had the audacity to write letters to _her_ Honoka!

She never actually saw the letters that Tsubasa sent Honoka, her friend kept them too close to her for Kotori to sneak a look, but still she could tell what was in them from the replies that Honoka wrote and she didn't like it at all. _I mean who cares whether Erena and Anju are being sickeningly lovey dovey! Or whether she'd been getting into bar fights with the Americans on Salisbury!_ Kotori thought bitterly. Worse still it was obvious that most of the letters that Tsubasa had sent contained a lot of flirtatious remarks or sometimes even more graphic descriptions. How did Honoka do it? It made her sick just to think about _that_ woman's name, let alone the things that she must've described!

The sniper was just thankful that Honoka gave her the replies to 'take care' of like this. That way _that_ woman wouldn't write back as often and hopefully she'd get the message that Honoka loved Kotori, not her! After all Honoka would never leave her, especially after she promised she'd stay with Kotori forever. Plus ever since she'd been more open wither feelings Honoka had been paying attention to her more, it wasn't all good attention but still it felt good to be noticed by her.

Except it didn't seem to be working, Kotori had burned the last three replies secretly like this and yet the damned French woman just kept sending letters. Honoka thankfully had yet to cotton on that her replies weren't getting through although she did think it was odd that Tsubasa never answered any of her questions. But this couldn't continue. Kotori was going to have to give her a more direct message. That was why she was kind of happy that Tsubasa was transferring into their battalion, Honoka had even arranged for the French trio to be attached to their section. Now she would see how hopeless it was to try and steal Honoka away from her because she would see that they were so in love with each other.

If that didn't work though, Kotori would have to take drastic action, who knows what this strange French girl might do; she might hurt Honoka or even kidnap her! Kotori would have to protect Honoka if that was the case…

The letter was no more than ash on the ground now Kotori kicked it into the grass leaving only a slight scorch mark to indicate what she had done.

"There," Kotori whispered to the wind "Now Honoka and I can finally be together in peace, like it's always been, like it always _will_ be…" She looked at the few specks of light in the distance at the camp fires and cast her mind back to the time when she'd become certain Honoka felt the same way she did. "Huh, it's been more than a year now since that day that made our fame…"

* * *

July 15th 1943, Temple of the Nine Muses, Near Catania, Sicily

"SERGEANT! They're bringing up MGs!" Kotori saw Honoka snap her head to the left, her attention drawn away from the battle before her by the girl with black hair and ruby eyes gesturing widely to their left.

"Honoka they're trying to outflank us!" Umi, shouted from her position crouched behind a column with the still wounded Maki, a little further down the ruins.

Kotori was just able to hear Honoka growl. She knew what would be running through her friend's head. _They're going to overwhelm us and we're running low on ammo…_ calling the situation grim would be an understatement.

They'd held off attacks all day, the first few barely made it to the temple if at all, but they'd started to run out of ammo, and the rationing of that precious commodity meant that attacks were getting closer, and the Germans were learning too…their mortar support had been mostly blown up yesterday when Kotori had shot that shell as they were loading it, but now they'd learnt, the mortars they'd brought up now were well out of sight, hidden somewhere.

Honoka punched the marble in front of her, swearing loudly. "Fuck! Kotori you deal with the MGs! Nozomi, Eli, deal with the flanking force, you too Hanayo. The rest of you keep those bloody Germans' heads down!" the ragtag group shouted an acknowledgement over the din of battle and Kotori scrambled over the chunks of marble and alabaster that covered the top of the hill to a new position, bullets pinging off of the columns and sending sharp pieces of rock flying through the air.

Another mortar round exploded with a loud 'bang' the blast was close enough for the shockwave to knock her off of her feet. Her helmet clonked against the dusty orange earth the sniper lay there dazed for a few seconds before reaching for the rifle that she had let fall to the ground. She pulled herself up looking back to see that the mortar bomb had hit the two boulders that she was crouched behind a few minutes ago… She shivered at the near miss, focussing on getting herself up.

She squeezed herself into the gap between two slabs of white marble pitted with age before she heard a loud chatter rip through the air and an angry shout come from her friend below.

"Kotori…MGs" Was all she could make out from Honoka's shout, and she was pretty sure from her tone of voice that was all she wanted to make out.

She put her eye to the scope on her rifle scanning the left flank for the tell-tale flashes the tracer rounds helped too. Kotori smirked at the decision to use tracers; it just made them that much easier to see. They might not even know that there was a sniper up here. She adjusted for the slight wind and lined up one of the machine gunner's helmet in her cross hairs. She squeezed the trigger the satisfying crack and kick of recoil following moments later. The Machine gun stopped, the loader confused and surprised at the sudden death of his companion. Kotori cycled the bolt and fired again, the loader followed his comrade into the afterlife mere seconds later…

The other gun crew ducked for cover, the chatter of machine gun fire from the flank stopped and Kotori saw her friends look up from behind their cover and pour murderous fire into the attacking soldiers.

Kotori kept her scope centred on the other MG that remained silent, she knew that they were there, that they were waiting until she was dead, or they were brave and stupid enough to get up again. And in all that time what remained of her company would keep firing, driving the enemy back.

Honoka had been right to withdraw back here there was practically no cover in between them and the enemy positions it was impossible to mount a large attack without heavy losses or covering fire. And most of the time they tried covering fire the enemy's machine guns would mysteriously fall silent.

The officer in command of the Germans was clearly getting impatient, and his men were being thrown forward in ever increasing levels of desperation, like they were men possessed. Each attack was like a scene from the Somme, coordination was non-existent now although the pressure was unrelenting. The last attack had actually gotten into hand to hand combat…

Kotori spied movement off to her side; she took a brief glance away from her target for a millisecond to see Umi trying to move Maki once more.

She snapped her vision back down the scope. No one had moved yet, although they were getting braver a sliver of helmet being visible from beneath the mound the gunners were taking cover behind.

She heard the Bren fall silent and saw the machine gunners she had pinned pull their gun back over the lip of the mound, they were preparing to move. Perhaps the Bren gunners, Nozomi and Eli she remembered them being called, had been killed and they were moving to take advantage of the new gap in their defences, after all it was only a matter of time before that happened.

The lead gunner popped his head up over the mound breaking into a sprint, with the machinegun slung over his shoulder. His companion followed seconds later laden down with belts of ammunition and metal ammunition boxes. Kotori followed the lead gunner for a few seconds with her scope before squeezing the trigger again. Her rifle barked and she saw blood spurt from his thigh.

Kotori clucked her tongue. It was a less than perfect shot. The least she should be able to afford her victims is a quick death not one spent writhing in pain.

She snapped her sights onto the fleeing gunner who slowed down agonising over saving his own life, or something else, whether it was the gun or his friend she wasn't sure, you could see a lot through a sniper's scope, what a person looked like when they were joking with friends, the look of fear on their face when they were in the middle of combat and the fact that you were shooting at humans, not monsters. But you couldn't accurately read a person's mind.

Kotori cycled her bolt ejecting the hot brass casing, which bounced off the column next to her and landing in her boot. She hissed trying to steady her rifle and ignore the pain of burning metal. She squeezed the trigger gently, the tension in the gun seemingly greater because of the pain in her feet.

The bullet spewed forth in a sharp thunderclap punching through the thin metal of the German's helmet in a spray of red mist.

Kotori finally switched her line of fire, looking down the slope of the temple to see her friends just about holding off the enemy attack. Nozomi and Eli were crouched next to their Bren Eli's rifle pouring fire into the enemy, the silent machine gun obviously having jammed or run out of ammunition. Maki was yelling at Umi to focus on the enemy and not her. The Two girls who were all that was left of C platoon; Hanayo and Rin, were fighting tooth and nail, Hanayo's rifle bolt was such a blur it looked almost like she was using one of those semi-automatics that the Americans used. Kotori gasped when a grenade was thrown into their position but Rin calmly picked it up and threw it back at the Germans with only moments before it blew up scattering shrapnel over an advancing group of enemies who'd gotten too close.

Her crosshairs settled on the open no-man's land that was being riddled wither friend's bullets and was littered with the enemy dead and wounded. She picked out a few officers brave enough to stand and try and add impetus to the faltering attack. She quickly dispatched them, further demoralising the very soldiers they had sought to encourage with their stupidity.

It started in ones and twos, then in threes and fours. The Germans finally started pulling back the trickle of men running for their lives became a flood which the officers and NCOs fought desperately to control.

Kotori breathed a sigh of relief _We've won, for now._ She thought. The distinctive pop of mortar fire reminded her that they weren't out of the woods yet. But the pressure was eased significantly. She scrambled back down the slope to run behind cover next to Honoka.

"We did it Honoka-chan." Kotori leant against the boulder, her head just peeking over the top, while Mortar bombs fell so far off target it would almost be funny if they didn't shake Kotori to her bones, and feel like her eardrums would shatter with every explosion. She looked back at Honoka one more time; she appeared to be distracted by something… "Honoka-chan?"

"Kotori down!" Honoka moved with lighting speed leaping at Kotori pushing her to the ground. A rifle cracked in the distance and the bullet grazed Honoka's arm before boring into the rock behind her sending splinters flying, right where Kotori's head had been.

Kotori lay there for a few seconds processing what happened while Honoka grabbed her rifle and took quick aim, firing off three shots at the distant sniper, she couldn't see if Honoka had landed a hit but at least it would keep the sniper's head down. Kotori sat there still shaken by how close she had come to death, but more so by the blood trickling down Honoka's arm.

"Kotori-chan? Are you Ok?" Kotori looked up seeing her friend crouched over her again worry in her eyes.

"Why did you do that?" Kotori asked quietly.

"Do what?"

"Why did you risk your life for me? You could've been killed! And then I'd never be able to forgive myself for letting you get hurt!" Kotori became more and more agitated, her voice becoming louder as she shouted at her friend.

"But this is just a small graze." Honoka looked at the ashen haired sniper with an innocence that was almost too much for her.

"An inch lower and you'd be bleeding out!"

"Yeah I guess you're right…" Honoka rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly.

Kotori sighed, "You didn't have to do that for me Honoka-chan." Kotori sighed "But I appreciate it all the same…" _Now I know why Umi-chan feels she has to yell at Honoka, she's much too reckless to every be given any responsibility._ Her gaze softened _But still, I love her all the same._

"I understand after all you're my precious friend Kotori-chan."

Kotori blushed slightly at the comment, pulling Honoka into a hug. "Same to you Honoka-chan" She sighed wishing that she could just stay here forever with her arms wrapped around Honoka.

* * *

Kotori looked around the gathered huddle of her comrades, a few keeping watch into the darkness of night while they did a final ammo count.

"…Nozomi how much left?"

The purple haired girl sighed clearly uncomfortable without her gun "None sergeant."

"Please just call me Honoka it's easier, I've never felt at ease with the rank anyway…" Honoka did some mental calculations in her head "…Ok at the rate of consumption, we'll run out of ammo by ten o'clock tomorrow morning, and that's only if we spread out what we've got and if the Boche only exchange harassing fire."

"It's that bad?!" Private Yazawa, or Nico as Honoka had insisted everyone call her, looked surprised, her skin appearing ghostly white in the moonlight.

Honoka nodded. "I'm afraid so, the only other option is to try and appropriate some captured weaponry from the dead out there. Kotori you said you knew where two Machine guns were?"

"Yes, they're over by the mound on the other side of the ruins."

"And we can get enough rifles and ammo from the ordinary soldiers…" Umi added.

"Right then, everyone we're going on a little scavenger hunt." Honoka jumped up enthusiastically.

Umi sighed, making her exasperation with her friend clear.

Kotori sidled up next to her earning a few dirty looks from Maki "Awww don't be like that Umi-chan it'll be fun." Honoka danced around assigning everyone directions to search in.

"Don't encourage her Kotori! You know she should be taking this more seriously."

"But it's cute don't you think? The way she can be so enthusiastic."

Umi groaned next to her, "You think everything she does is cute."

Kotori blushed and flicked Umi's helmet with a light 'ping' "I-I don't I mean…"

"Kotori it's obvious you have a crush on Honoka, seriously I've known you two for years and its obvious how you feel.

"D-Do you know how she feels?" Kotori ventured

Umi shook her head "The day someone can tell what that girl is thinking is the day that hell freezes over and the war ends with a huge explosion…"

Kotori's face fell, until Honoka came around at least.

"Umi-chan I want you to take the southern slope, Maki can stay up here and keep watch. Kotori-chan you're coming with me and Nozomi-chan, to find those machine guns, after all you're the one who knows where they are."

Kotori's smile returned in full force upon hearing that. "Of course Honoka-chan."

"Right everyone knows where they are going. So let's move!"

The girls except for Maki all stood up and made their way down the ruins vaulting over old tumbled walls and broken bullet scarred columns.

Kotori mostly kept silent marvelling at the stars above them and the feeling of being close to Honoka as she led her and Nozomi down the slope, the occasional rattle of equipment being the only sound accompanying them.

"I wonder why the Luftwaffe hasn't just blown us to bits yet…" Nozomi mused breaking the perfect silence that allowed Kotori to simply enjoy the feeling of being with Honoka as well as reminding her that they weren't alone. Kotori silently cursed the machine gunner under her breath.

Honoka hummed while she thought "I think that they are probably stretched thin, I mean the Generals did say they'd establish local air superiority after all… and we aren't that important. Or maybe the officer in charge down there doesn't want to admit his failure to high command."

Nozomi nodded in agreement. The two kept talking about the finer details of situation and the campaign. Kotori felt the growing hole in her chest of jealousy. At least until Nozomi admitted her reason for turning down promotion several times, her teammate Eli…

Kotori breathed a sigh of relief, at least she knew now that Nozomi wouldn't try to steal Honoka from her. She slung her rifle over her back signalling for the two girls to stop. "We're here" she whispered pointing at the mound in front of her; it was steeper than it had looked through the scope.

Kotori scrambled up the slope, seeing two bodies lying by their Machine gun, both felled by neat holes in their heads. The gun looked fine but it only had one belt of ammunition. She frowned and signalled for Honoka and Nozomi to join her.

"What is it Kotori?" Honoka hissed as quietly as she could.

Kotori pointed to the gun before them gesturing at Nozomi. "Nozomi-san, is that enough ammo?"

To her dismay Nozomi shook her head. "We're trained on these things too just in-case we need to use them like this, but one of the first things we learn is that the MG42 has a ridiculous rate of fire and burns through ammo to match that."

Kotori thought for a second. Scratching her chin and casting her mind back to the chaos earlier that day. She snapped her fingers "Wait there were two up here. One got away and I think that they had an extra ammo tin on them."

"So?" Honoka asked "They got away…Why are you telling us this now?"

The sniper grinned "They didn't get far…I managed to catch them over there." She pointed to the flat plain near the German lines "They can't be more than 50 metres away from us right now"

Honoka smiled at the news "Nozomi, you grab that gun and ammo and take it back up the hill, me and Kotori will go looking for her victims."

Nozomi gave a quick acknowledgment and grabbed the gun jogging back up the ruins.

As she jogged Kotori and Honoka scrambled down the other side of the mound, tracing the route that her unfortunate targets had taken earlier that day, Kotori crouched low when they went onto the open plain looking warily towards the German lines, a few sentries visible just behind the hedges that marked the end of no-man's land.

She felt a presence crawl up beside her and they both lay prone tracing their way towards the corpses of the machine gun crew, evidently the enemy hadn't wanted to risk getting their heads blown off to save the wounded, those that could, had dragged themselves back to the German lines. While the others still lay moaning in pain.

"Honoka." She whispered "I see them up ahead; the one on the right has the ammunition." Kotori saw Honoka's silhouette nod in the darkness. They both crawled up to it occasionally playing dead whenever the closest sentry looked their way.

After what seemed like hours, but couldn't have been more than minutes, they reached the German with the ammo. Honoka grabbed the green ammo crate from his stiff fingers, prising it open with a sound that Kotori was certain would get them spotted, she heard Honoka give a muffled "yes!"

The pair turned around and started crawling towards the mound once more. Both of them tried to keep as silent as possible. Suddenly a flare lit up the night, before all hell broke loose. A few Machine guns from the German positions opened up at somewhere further to their left, tracers ripped their way through the night, arcing over to where their comrades were collecting weapons.

"Shit!" Honoka shouted. "Kotori! Move! We've been spotted." Both girls got up and ran for their lives. A sentry spotted their retreating figures and sounded out the alarm an MG swung around to try and fire at them.

Bullets tore up the dirt all around them, tracers lit up the night, and the blinding glare of the flare forced Kotori to squint. She hit the deck keeping her hands over the back of her head.

"Kotori what are you doing?! It could be a night attack!" Honoka ran back through the wall of lead and picked up her friend by her webbing. "Come on we need to keep moving or we die!"

Kotori shook herself and forced a smile, "Of course. lead the way Honoka-chan." Honoka smiled at that, while they both ran once more for the safety of the ruins. Honoka vaulted an overturned column in front of her and waited briefly while Kotori climbed over it, they were both safe for now at least.

The sniper breathed while her friend took a look around the edge of the column. "Crap! I can see a few sections of Germans advancing. They really caught us with our trousers down!" Honoka looked around desperately seeing a few of the other groups taking up positions in the ruins again, laden with weapons and ammo. "Can you decapitate their command structure? I'll take the ammo to Nozomi and get our new gun talking." Honoka sprinted off while a hail of bullets fried following her.

Kotori steadied her breathing this wasn't easy while the adrenaline pumped through her system. A few deep breaths later and she felt confident enough to actually hit something. She placed her rifle on top of the column, the flare doing a brilliant job of creating dancing shadows in her scope, but also of showing her exactly where the Germans where. She scanned the sections, she couldn't see their rank at this range, but she could at least see who was giving the orders. She opened up her rifle slowly checking there was a round in the chamber, before snapping the bolt shut, she lined up her first target. The sharp crack of her rifle blended in with the cacophony of battle, hopefully masking her presence. Her target hit the floor, dead or wounded it didn't matter. Kotori moved onto her next, and her next and her next; each one falling down like the first.

The other defenders opened up with their captured weapons, and the attack began to lose momentum. Then the familiar chatter of a Spandau sounded from behind her. Kotori jumped, before remembering the prize she had retrieved with Nozomi and Honoka, the flare winked out just as the attackers were driven back in a hail of bullets.

* * *

Kotori looked up at the night sky, picking out the constellations that her mother had taught her, when she was younger, before all this happened. If it wasn't for the hard boulder at her back and her rifle wedged between two rocks she could almost imagine that she was back home in Lightseed, stargazing with Honoka. Umi too, but mostly it was time she spent with Honoka.

The sniper giggled as she remembered the way that Honoka would marvel at the Milky Way, or how she always questioned the myths that Kotori was telling her about such and such constellation. Like the time she asked why Andromeda didn't just kick her parents in the face and run off somewhere, 'How come she needed this Perseus bloke?' was the way she put it so eloquently.

Kotori loved that side to her, the way that she always said what she thought and never let anyone else thrust their values onto her.

She shivered in the cold night air, she'd offered to take first watch on sentry duty in case the enemy attempted another night attack, but despite the heat during the day, the Sicilian air carried a bite with it at night and her summer uniform didn't help matters. She could faintly hear the crackle of a camp fire and the hushed whispers of stories and jokes being shared.

She felt lonely, and cold out here. Kotori knew that the fire wouldn't be that warm because they still had to hide, that the tea would be lukewarm at best and that she would be relieved eventually but by that time everyone else would be asleep. Kotori felt like she was missing out on important bonding time with her friends, and it hurt a little.

"Still someone needs to make sure that we don't get stabbed in the back…" she whispered to the darkness before shivering again.

"Kotori-chan?" Kotori turned around after hearing Honoka's voice, she saw her friend standing with her beret on her head and two steaming mugs of what smelled like tea.

"Ah Honoka, why are you here? Your watch isn't until after Eli-san's."

"I thought you might be lonely, and Nico-chan had just made some tea, so I brought you some, although it's black because we don't have any milk, sorry." Honoka handed her the tea apologising.

Kotori smiled holding the mug in her hands letting the heat radiate from the battered metal into her cold fingers. She brought the mug to her face bathing it in the steam and the warm comforting smell of the tea. "It's Ok. I know it will be delicious because you brought it to me Honoka-chan."

Honoka jumped down and plonked herself next to Kotori, "You were stargazing weren't you?" Kotori nodded, hearing Honoka to giggle at that. "I suppose Umi-chan would have a go at you for slacking on sentry duty, but I don't see why we can't enjoy the beauty of this world even when surrounded by all its ugliness."

"Do you remember stargazing back at home?" Kotori took a sip of her tea, warming her slightly.

"Hmmm, of course…" Honoka said quietly. "We'd make a campfire and watch the stars."

"And I'd tell you both the stories my mother told me, although you could never quite understand them Honoka-chan."

"I'm just saying why does the story always have to be a boy saving the girl or marrying her or something stupid like that?"

Kotori laughed lightly at her friend's exasperated nature, before shivering again.

"Kotori are you cold?"

"A little…" Kotori admitted sheepishly. "But it isn't like I can just start a campfire here, we'd be spotted…" the ashen haired girl was surprised when something warm wrapped itself around her body; she stiffened a little at the shock of the hug Honoka had given her. "H-Honoka?" she asked nervously

"It's fine Kotori-chan, I'll be your campfire, for now and in the future too. Because you are my precious friend…" Kotori heard Honoka keep talking, but she didn't listen. It didn't matter after all, all that mattered was that Honoka had promised that she wouldn't abandon Kotori again, all of a sudden she was ten once more, when Honoka had promised herself to her the first time.

* * *

Allied Army Camp Otonokizaka, Near Sword beach, Normandy

Kotori sighed a the memory, that time when she felt sure that the flames that burned for Honoka in her heart were returned, she remembered the feeling of Honoka hugging her tightly, vowing never to let go of her. She blushed and started daydreaming about the life she and Honoka would lead once the war finished.

"Eehhh? Tsu-chan what are you doing here?" That voice, it was Honoka's.

Kotori stole around the tent peering around the edge slightly keeping to the shadows like any good sniper would. She saw Honoka standing there looking very surprised at the short girl with brunette hair stood next to a jeep and who was wearing the standard khaki uniform and dark blue beret of the free French Infantry, It took Kotori a few seconds to recognise her as Kira Tsubasa.

"I'm taking you on a trip Honoka." Trip?! Does that mean that she _was_ stealing Honoka from her? Honoka looked reluctant thankfully; Kotori knew that the girl she loved wouldn't be swayed by simple flirtatious words. At least Kotori thought Honoka looked reluctant.

"B-B-But Tsu-chan, we can't we're shipping out in a few days." Tsubasa placed her finger on Honoka's lips silencing her and immediately causing Honoka to blush, she closed the distance between her and Honoka once more like she had done at the bridge all those weeks ago.

Tsubasa gently rubbed Honoka's shoulders wrapping one arm around her neck. "Shhh, Honoka, I called in a few favours, after all I think we need to spend some time together, just the two of us. Besides don't you want to spend a few days before you head back to _Angleterre_ with me?" Tsubasa had reduced Honoka to a blushing mess again; she was ripe fruit ready to be picked.

Honoka nodded, dazed by everything that was happening, she tried closing some distance herself, moving her lips closer to Tsubasa's and whispering her reply. "Of course I do…"

Tsubasa smiled and broke away from Honoka, causing the ginger girl to pout. "Well come on get in the jeep, Paris is a long way away after all."

Honoka blinked surprised as she got into the jeep. "P-Paris?!"

Tsubasa winked, "Of course. It is the city of love after all…"

Kotori paled at what she had just witnessed, it was all she could do not to start screaming there and then. _She is going to take Honoka-chan from me! She is going to steal her from me! But Honoka-chan loves us? Why can't she understand?_ Every little movement, every intimate touch made Kotori feel the cold primal rage, she wanted to scratch Tsubasa's eyes out, to scream at her and tell her to leave Honoka alone, she wanted to hurt her.

Kotori shook her head, "That Frenchwoman is going to regret touching _my_ Honoka…" she smiled sweetly, plotting Tsubasa's downfall in her head.

* * *

 **A/N: So this chapter was basically fleshing out Kotori's character, and so I didn't really know where to go with it, hence the writer's block. next one I do know what's happening (It's basically a massive TsubaHono fluff fest in Paris :p) so that shouldn't take as long, then after that Market Garden starts so we're off to Arnhem!**

 **Glossary:**

 **I'm 90% certain that I've done everything before but just in case...**

 **Tracer: Tracer rounds are bullets or other rounds that have a chemical charge in their base that ignites upon firing making the trajectory visible to the shooter, and everyone else.**

 **Spandau: nickname for MG42 by commonwealth forces**

 **Mortar High trajectory low range muzzle loading very light artillery piece.**


End file.
